Ren's Perfect Mistake
by Widow Shark
Summary: COMPLETED! Ren believes that she has made one of the worst mistakes of her life, but learns it is one of the best mistakes she has ever made.
1. Maybe It's Just Food Poisoning?

Disclaimer: I do not own Even Stevens. The Walt Disney Co. does. Only the idea for this story belongs to me.  
  
Summary: Ren believes that she has made one of the worst mistakes of her life, but learns it is one of the best mistakes she has ever made.  
  
A/N: And now, the moment you've been waiting for.The Beginning of the story. Enjoy.  
  
Ren's Perfect Mistake  
  
Chapter 1: Maybe It's Just Food Poisoning?  
  
Ren woke up feeling nauseated and moaned all the way to the bathroom she shared with her younger brother, Louis. She reached the bathroom door and barely made it to the toilet before she vomited. When she was finished, she washed her face in the sink and put a wet washcloth on the back of her neck. She felt her forehead; she didn't have a fever. 'Maybe it's just food poisoning?' Ren thought to herself. Then she got that feeling in the pit of her stomach again. Ren dove for the toilet and threw up again.  
Ren and Louis' mother, Eileen, came upstairs to wake them up. She stopped in Ren's room first because she knew she would be easiest to wake up. "Ren, time to get up and go to school," she said. Eileen looked around Ren's room, but didn't see her daughter anywhere. "Ren?" she asked again. Then she heard sounds coming from the bathroom.  
"Mom?" Ren called in a whimper. "Mom, I don't feel so good," she cried. Eileen came into the bathroom and felt her daughter's forehead and sighed.  
"Well, you don't have a fever, but if you don't feel good you can stay home."  
"Thanks, Mom," Ren said groggily and somewhat upset. "I'm going back to sleep."  
"Okay, I'll tell you what I'll do. I'll call off work and then drop Louis off at school. And I'll let you get some rest, Honey. All right?"  
"All right," Ren replied crawling back into bed.  
  
Ren slept until about 11:30 and woke up feeling rejuvenated. She then went downstairs to find something to eat. Her mom was sitting in a chair reading. Eileen looked up as soon as she heard Ren coming downstairs.  
"Feeling better, Ren?" she asked  
"A lot better," Ren replied walking into the kitchen and opening the refrigerator. "Do we have any chips and dip?" she asked. "I'm a little hungry."  
"That was a very quick recovery, Ren!" Eileen stated somewhat surprised. Then she asked her daughter a sort of personal question. "Honey, are you 'due' yet? Because when I was your age I used to get nauseous right around my time of the month." Ren's eyes opened wide and she ran upstairs without even answering her mother's question. She hadn't even thought about her 'time.' In fact, she had completely forgotten about it. She opened her night stand drawer and took out her pocket calendar and counted the days. She was a day late. It wasn't the first time though, so she didn't worry about it too much.  
  
Ren went to school the rest of the week without incidence. However, she became worried after she was 'late' for about a week. The before school nausea started up again in the middle of the next week. Ren decided to "stick it out" at school rather than stay home, although she missed half of first period everyday that week.  
  
It had been nearly two weeks and Ren was still 'late.' It was beginning to scare her. Then it hit her like a ton of bricks while she was sitting in the clinic one morning during first period. A month earlier she had gone to her boyfriend, Bobby Deaver's house for a party. He had asked her to stay for a movie afterwards. Except, she and Bobby didn't watch the movie.  
  
~Flashback~  
  
"Hey, Ren, would you like to stay for a movie?" Bobby asked.  
"I'd love to," Ren said, " but I have to call and ask my parents."  
"Cool, the phone is right over there," he pointed then went over to a shelf filled with movies. Ren walked over to the phone and dialed her number. Louis answered the phone.  
"I'm sorry, but the number you have reached is temporarily out of service. If you'd.."  
"Louis!" she yelled.  
"Oh, hi, Sis."  
"Don't you 'oh, hi, Sis' me. Is Mom around?" she asked angrily.  
"Yeah, hold on. Moooooooommm!" Louis yelled. "Phoooone!" Eileen picked up the phone.  
"Hello?"  
"Hi. Mom?"  
"Yes, Ren?" she asked.  
"Is it all right with you if I stay at Bobby's to watch a movie?" Ren asked crossing her fingers.  
"Well, I guess it's okay if you stay as long as you're home before curfew."  
"Oh, thank you, thank you, THANK YOU! I'll call before I drive home. Love you. Bye."  
"Bye, Ren," Eileen said hanging up the phone. Ren went and sat down on the couch next to Bobby. He had already picked out two movies.  
"I take it you're allowed to stay," he stated.  
"Yeah," Ren said a little more composed than when she was on the phone.  
"Which movie?" he asked holding up a copy of 'Twister' in one hand and 'Jurassic Park' in the other.  
"Whichever," Ren said.  
Bobby stood up from the couch and put the tape in the VCR. Then he sat back down on the couch next to Ren. They started to watch the movie.  
After about fifteen minutes the two teenagers began to snuggle. At about a half-hour into the movie they started kissing. And by the end of the movie.  
  
~End Flashback~  
  
Ren gasped. 'How could she have let herself get so far? She was always so responsible.' Ren began to cry. The nurse asked her if everything was okay. Ren said it was and got a pass back to first period.  
  
Ren got back to first period with her face streaked with tears and took her seat next to her best friend, Ruby.  
"Is everything okay, Ren? What's wrong?" Ruby whispered.  
"Nothing," Ren told her. Ruby was worried. 'Ren only cried when something was horribly wrong. Something was definitely bothering her. But what?' Ruby had noticed Ren going to the clinic every morning, but hadn't linked it to anything. 'Maybe that's what was bothering her?' she thought. She'd have to find out later that day.  
  
A/N: Hello, Widow Shark here! I just want to say that this is my first Even Stevens fanfiction. I hope you enjoyed it. I do realize that it deals with a serious issue, teen pregnancy, but I have seen so many girls in my school this year that I had to get this story online. So, please be a gem and review my story. Thank you. 


	2. Organized Lies

Disclaimer: I do not own Even Stevens. The Walt Disney Co. does. Only the idea for this story belongs to me.  
  
*Thank you artsigirl16 for the review.*  
  
A/N: Please be a gem, read and review.  
  
Ren's Perfect Mistake  
  
Chapter 2: Organized Lies  
  
After School:  
  
Ren had a dazed look on her face the entire day following first period. The only time she had "snapped out of it" was during her Algebra II test, in which case the daze turned into frustration. The daze had returned following the last word problem on the last page of the test. Ren was still in a dazed and confused mode while she was getting her books out of her locker. She wasn't even looking for which ones she needed for homework; she just grabbed them all. Ruby came up next to her, startling Ren out of her trance.  
"Is everything all right?" Ruby asked. Ren turned around and looked at her friend. Ruby noticed she had been crying for a while. Ren sniffled a little then answered her friend's question with another question.  
"Do you remember when Bobby asked me to stay to watch a movie with him after his party last month?" Ren said sniffling again.  
"Yeah," Ruby replied. "What happened?" Ren wasn't sure if she should tell her best friend, the school rumor mill, about what happened that night, but she did.  
"I thought that party was supervised!" Ruby exclaimed after Ren finished telling her story. Ren hushed her friend. She had new tears forming in her eyes.  
"Not so loud, Ruby," she said. "The party was supervised up until the last guest went home, with the exception of me. They told me I could stay to watch a movie with Bobby as long as it was okay with my parents." Ren sobbed again. "Why couldn't I have just gone home?" Ruby looked worried. Her friend was in a real predicament.  
"Where did Mr. and Mrs. Deaver go so late at night?" Ruby asked. Ren, who was twiddling her thumbs, looked down and then back up at her friend.  
"It wasn't that late. They went out for a light dinner and a movie." Ren sniffled again, but she had ceased crying. "Promise me you won't tell anybody, Ruby. You can't tell anyone! If word got out that.that I'm going to be a seventeen year-old mother, my reputation would be ruined. Do you promise?"  
"Okay, Ren. I won't tell anybody," Ruby said.  
"Promise!" Ren said sternly.  
"I promise. Cross my heart, hope to die, stick a needle in my eye. I swear I won't say anything," Ruby said. "Have you told you're parents yet?"  
"No," Ren whimpered, tears starting to stream down her cheeks again. Ruby put a hand on Ren's shoulder to comfort her, but to no avail. The two girls didn't even notice Larry Beal walking up behind them.  
"Aw! Isn't this so sad. Ren's crying like a little baby," he mocked.  
"Go away!" Ren said angrily.  
"Ooo Touchy," Larry said.  
"I mean it, Larry. I'm not in the mood for your crap today." Larry's jaw dropped. Ren never said a bad word in her life, at least as long as he'd known her. Ren was sobbing again.  
"Hey, I'm sorry," Larry said and walked away. Ren was wiping the tears from her eyes when Louis walked over to where she and Ruby were standing. Ruby hugged Ren and told her that she knew that everything would work out fine and walked away.  
"Hi, sis!" Louis said smiling cheerfully. His smile faded fast when he noticed Ren was crying. "What's wrong? Why are you crying? You almost never cry," he rambled on.  
"Nothing. Come on, let's go," is all Ren said. She grabbed her backpack and books then walked out to the parking lot with her brother. They got into Ren's car and drove home in silence. Little did Ren know that the school nurse had called home earlier in the day.  
Louis opened the door and Ren followed quietly closing the door behind her. She had stopped crying by now, but she still didn't want to face her mother. Not yet. It was too late though. Ren's mother called from the kitchen,  
"Ren, is that you?" she asked.  
"Yeah, Mom?" Ren replied. There was no trying to ignore her mother. She was home and there was no place to escape to. She walked into the kitchen and sat down next to her mother at the table.  
"The school nurse called," Eileen said. Ren's heart stopped in mid- beat. "She said that you've been down there first period every day this past week; and that you've been throwing up. Ren?" Ren didn't answer. "Ren?" her mom repeated.  
"Yeah?" Ren finally answered.  
"Is everything all right, Honey?" she asked. "Cause I'm a little worried about you."  
"Everything is fine, Mom," Ren lied. "I have some homework to finish up." Then she ran upstairs to her room, plopped down on her bed and cried. 'At least it's the weekend,' Ren thought. "Well," she told herself quietly, "some pickle you've gotten yourself into this time." And speaking of pickles, Ren realized she really wanted one, but she didn't even like them all that much. She was horrified. "Cravings?" Ren decided she should work out a plan for the next day, so grabbing a box of tissues and a pad of paper and pen she wrote down a list of things she needed to do. Ren's List: Buy a pregnancy test, take pregnancy test, tell parents (only if it's positive), tell Bobby (only if it's positive). 'There's no need to tell anyone if it's negative,' Ren thought. 'That ought to do it, for now anyways. At least I can still be organized.' She smiled a little bit. "Organization is one way to get things done without a problem," she said to herself. "I just wish I didn't have to organize any more lies." She stuffed the list under the top mattress on her bed when she heard her dad call her down to dinner. 'No one will find it there,' she thought. Ren sighed and went downstairs. She put on an act for her family. She knew at least her brothers would buy into it. She smiled big and asked everybody how their day was, like she always did, and listened to their usual responses. Mom helped her constituents with getting a road repaired. Dad stayed home and mowed the lawn. Donnie, who was surprisingly accepted into a local college, said he got a B minus on his research paper for sports education. Louis, now in tenth grade, pulled a prank on Principle Wexler (who followed Ren up to the high school) with the help of his partner in crime, Alan Twitty. Then the table turned to Ren and asked her the same question. She answered that her day had been fine. She was still getting A's in all of her classes (Ren asked for a weekly progress report, not that she needed it) and she said that she wanted to maybe go do some shopping with Ruby after dinner. Ren of course left out the part where she went to the clinic and about crying on and off all day. When everybody was done eating, Ren volunteered to clear the table and wash the dishes. Then she called Ruby to see if she wanted to go shopping, which, of course, she did. Ren told her parents where she was going and left to pick up Ruby. 


	3. People Make Mistakes

Disclaimer: I do not own Even Stevens. The Walt Disney Co. does. Only the idea for this story belongs to me.  
  
Thanks to political princess for the review!  
  
A/N: I apologize if chapter two is hard to read towards the end, the computer messed it up when I was uploading. I hope this chapter is easier to read. Please be a gem, read and review.  
  
Ren's Perfect Mistake  
  
Chapter 3: People Make Mistakes  
  
Ren was half way to Ruby's house when she remembered her list. She had wanted to save it for the next day, but after dishes she knew what she had to do, and she had to do it tonight, or not at all. She had been thinking about it the whole time she was washing dishes. 'What if her parents caught on? What if they dragged her down to the family clinic and make her take one there? What if.' There were too many 'what ifs' that worried Ren. She had to find out tonight. Before anyone else.  
Ruby was already sitting on her front porch when Ren pulled in the driveway. She stood up and walked over to Ren's car, greeted her friend with a 'hello', and cautiously got in. She had bumped her head on the low roof of the car one too many times. As soon as Ruby pulled the door shut and got her seatbelt on, Ren backed out of the driveway and turned on the street opposite the one heading toward the mall. "Hey, why are you going this way? I thought we were going to the mall," Ruby said. "We are," Ren replied emotionlessly. "I have to do something first." Ruby was still worried about her friend after their earlier conversation at school. "Did you tell your parents that you're pregnant?" Ruby asked innocently enough. Ren was caught a little off guard by her friend's question. Ren was getting a little upset, although she wasn't at the point where she was ready to cry. "To tell you the truth, I don't even know for sure yet," she sniffled. "I just have this really strong, sick feeling that I am." She wiped a tear from her eye and turned into the parking lot of one branch of the many drug store chains that littered the suburbs of Sacramento. Ruby now knew what was going on. "I guess that means you didn't tell them yet," Ruby mumbled to herself.  
  
It didn't take long for Ren to find the home pregnancy test aisle of the pharmacy. She made sure that no one she knew (besides Ruby) was on or near that aisle before she dared to walk down it to look for the right test. Ren wanted to keep her 'problem' a secret as long as she could, especially from her peers and anyone who might recognize her as Senator Stevens' daughter. Ren found one that was right 99.9 percent of the time. There was barely any room for error and she liked that. Ruby, on the other hand, had uncomfortably slinked off to another aisle. Ren found her hiding behind a special edition issue of QT Boy Magazine on her way to the check out. The girls found themselves behind a very old woman at the checkout who kept insisting that milk was on sale two cartons for three dollars. The cashier kept insisting that it wasn't and eventually she called the manager to come clear things up. And since the only other register open was run by Tom, Ren really didn't have any other choice but to stay in the line she was in. Ruby could have gone and paid for her magazine, but decided to stay in line with Ren because she was trying to avoid Tom herself. The manager eventually came over to straighten things out. As it turns out, the old lady was right; milk was still on sale two for three dollars. He apologized to Ren and Ruby. To say the least, the manager wasn't too happy about the cashier holding up the line. Ren didn't mind though, she was able to work out a plan in her head. She'd take the test at the mall later so she wouldn't have to worry about a prying little brother finding out. Ren set her 'item' on the conveyor belt. The cashier picked it up and scanned it, giving Ren a sideways glance as she put it in the bag. 'I guess not too many eleventh graders come in here to buy home pregnancy tests,' Ren thought. Ren paid for the thing and waited until Ruby was finished making her purchase. The girls made a B-line from the drug store to the mall. Before they got out of the car, Ren put the little box in her over-sized purse and told Ruby what she planned on doing. Ruby said that whatever she wanted to do was fine by her. As soon as they were inside the mall, Ren went straight to the restroom, Ruby following close behind her. Ren took the little box out of her purse and, making sure nobody else was in there, read the meanings of the test results. "Blue means you are, clear means you are not." Ren sighed heavily. "Well, here goes nothing," she said going into one of the stalls. Ren carefully read the instructions on the back of the box then proceeded to do what they said. She came out of the stall only a couple minutes later with the plastic indicator in her hand. "Now all I have to do is wait," Ren sighed, nervously glancing back and forth from the indicator to her watch for the results, which she already knew in her heart. Then it happened. Ren felt her heart drop to the bottom of her stomach; her suspicions were painted clearly in the form of a little blue line in the window of the small, white, plastic stick. Ruby could see the fear on Ren's face. "Well, what does it say?" Ruby asked cautiously even though she already knew. Ren looked up at her friend. "It's confirmed," she said starting to tear up. "I'm pregnant."  
  
Ren stared off into space for quite a while before she said anything again. Then the tears started flowing uncontrollably. "I (sniffle) can't tell (sniffle) my parents," Ren sobbed. Ruby put an arm around her friend's shoulder and led her out of the restroom. She made her sit down on one of the benches scattered at various points in the mall. Ren was still sobbing and repeating that she couldn't tell her parents. Ruby sat down on the bench next to her, took the plastic stick out of her friend's hand, and tossed it into one of the trashcans situated on either side of the bench. She took hold of Ren's hands in her own and made her friend look her in the eye. "You have to tell your parents, Ren," Ruby said. "This is serious." "I know," Ren said between tears, "but I've never made a mistake this bad before." "People Make Mistakes!" Ruby yelled. She was getting angry, but she never meant to. "Nobody is perfect, Ren. I thought you knew that. There is no immunization against making mistakes. Come on," she said, "get up and give me your keys. I'm taking you home. You're in no condition to drive." Ren obediently handed the keys to her car over to her friend and followed her to the parking lot where the girls got into Ren's car. On the drive back to the Stevens household Ruby told Ren she would stay as moral support when she told her parents if she wanted her to. Ren only nodded. Ren was still crying when she opened the door. Ruby was right there next to her still trying to calm her down. To Ren's dismay and relief, Louis was the only one home. He had heard someone opening the door and had come down to investigate. He immediately noticed that his sister was crying. "What's wrong?" Louis asked. He was worried. He'd never been this worried about Ren in his life. "I can't tell you. Not yet," Ren told her little brother. Louis decided it would be better to just leave the girls alone to talk. He'd find out what was going on soon enough. But before he turned to go Ren asked him a question, "Where are Mom and Dad?" Louis just shrugged. "Don't know," he said. Then he went back upstairs to do who knows what. Ren sat down on the couch and Ruby sat down next to her. Ren grabbed the remote, turned the television on, and started flipping mindlessly through the channels. She wasn't looking for anything to watch in particular; actually, she could care less. She just needed something to do to get her mind off of having to inform her parents that they were going to be grandparents. Something on one of the stations had caught Ren's eyes as she was flipping through the channels. She stopped on it for a few minutes to see what it was. As it turned out it was one of those shows where people had cameras following them around the last month of their pregnancy and in the labor and delivery room. She thought those shows were disgusting, especially when they showed C-sections. She hoped she wouldn't have to have a C- section. "I hate reality T.V.," she said noncommittally turning the tube off. Ren had stopped crying, but there were still streaks marking where the tears had rolled down her cheeks and her eyes were red and puffy. Ruby just sat there quietly, which on her part, was quite an effort. Mr. and Mrs. Stevens walked in the door about ten minutes later. Mrs. Stevens immediately noticed that Ren had been crying. She said hello to Ruby who smiled and said hello back then sat down on the couch next to Ren. "What's wrong, Honey?" Eileen asked her daughter. "You know you can tell us anything," Steve, Ren's dad, said. Ren looked over at Ruby who gave her a thumbs up and mouthed an "it's okay, tell them, I'm here." Louis came downstairs just as Ren was getting ready to speak. Mr. Stevens told Louis to go right back up to his room and stay there until he was told it was okay to come down again. Louis did as he was told mumbling something under his breath about Ruby getting to stay there, all the way to his room. When Ren heard the door to Louis's bedroom slam shut she began to speak. Tears started welling up in her eyes. It was time to face the music. "I'm so sorry," was the first thing that she said. "What are you sorry for?" Mrs. Stevens asked. Ren wasn't sure if she could answer. She looked over at Ruby again for support. Ruby smiled faintly and nodded to Ren. "I'm, I'm," Ren started. She didn't feel too well, but she continued. "I'm," she started again. She was shaking heavily. "I'm pr.pr," she stammered, "pregnant!" she cried. Mr. and Mrs. Stevens looked at each other, both wearing the same concerned expression on their faces. Eileen pulled her daughter in for a hug and Steve rubbed his daughter's back. Ren was hysterical, but she felt better getting it out in the open. Ren was surprised by her parents' reaction though. They weren't yelling at her, they weren't demanding her to confess who the father was. They weren't even crying. They just comforted her until she was able to stop crying herself. She was thankful for that. Ren looked up when she had gotten her composure back and saw Ruby still sitting on the couch. 'Maybe that's why my parents hadn't yelled at me.' Ruby looked uncomfortable sitting there. 'She must have been staring at the floor the whole time I cried.' Ren thought. Just then, Ruby got up. "I should call my parents to come pick me up," she said nervously, walking into the kitchen to use the phone. Her parents were there within a few minutes to pick her up. Ren gave her friend a hug and whispered a "thank you" to her before she left. Once Ruby was gone, Ren braced herself for her parents' wrath, but to her surprise it didn't come. Instead, they all sat down on the couch and waited in an awkward silence for a long time before anyone said another word. 


	4. Goodbye Tears

Disclaimer: I do not own Even Stevens. The Walt Disney Co. does. Only the idea for this story belongs to me.  
  
Thanks once again to artsigirl16 and political princess for the reviews. : )  
  
A/N: Hooray for Snow Days!!!!! First, I want to apologize that chapter 3 was as messed up as chapter 2. I'm going to try something a little bit different this time so that maybe the paragraphs won't blend together. Second, I just want to say that I'm sorry it's taken me forever to update. Things came up, I had to work, yadda, yadda, yadda. Other than that, this has been Widow Shark, signing off. Please be a gem, read and review.  
  
W.S: (with mesmerized look on face) I will follow artsigirl16's orders. Here is the next chapter. (LOL).  
  
Ren's Perfect Mistake  
  
Chapter 4: Goodbye Tears  
  
Eileen was the first to break the silence. "Are you absolutely sure?" she asked unsteadily.  
  
Ren had stopped crying although she answered her mother's question with a still heavy heart. "I took a home pregnancy test," she sighed.  
  
"You know those things aren't always right," Steve said matter-of- factly. Ren looked down at the floor and glanced back up to meet her father's sorrowful gaze.  
  
"I know, Dad, but I've had all of the symptoms. The school nurse called Mom because I've been in there everyday this past week throwing up," Ren said.  
  
"Is this true, Eileen?" Steve asked his wife. Eileen bit her lip. She hadn't told her husband that the nurse had called, but she wasn't about to lie to her family.  
  
"Yes," she said. "The school nurse did call. She was afraid Ren might be.," she couldn't finish the sentence. "I told her that Ren would never do something like that and hung up on her." Eileen had a guilty look on her face. "Well, anyway, I started to think about what she said, but I didn't want to come right out and ask," she paused and smiled whole- heartedly at her daughter. "I'm so proud of you, Ren. Thank you for being so honest." She gave her daughter a hug. Ren smiled, it was the best she had felt in days.  
  
When they had finished embracing, Ren asked her mother why she was so proud of her. She didn't understand. To Ren it seemed to be the most complex thing in her life. She was going to be a teenage mother and her parents weren't angry or even worse disappointed; they were proud of her.  
  
"That's simple," Steve started, "you came right out and told us that you were uh, um." He felt very uncomfortable saying the "P-word" about his seventeen year-old daughter.  
  
"It's okay, Daddy. You don't have to say it. I'm not so sure I even want to hear it right now," Ren said giving her father a hug.  
  
"Just one question," Eileen said. "Is Bobby the father and when did you two, you know? We can figure out what to do about everything else in the morning."  
  
'Hey, that's two questions,' Ren thought, but she decided to come right out and answer it. She thought that if she had waited, she would not have been able to tell her parents. She looked down at the floor, "Bobby is the father," Ren confirmed. "And it was last month, right after his party." Ren looked up at her mother. "When I called and asked if I could stay to watch a movie. It wasn't planned, I swear!" Ren added in defensively.  
  
"Calm down, Honey. I believe you," she said in a comforting tone of voice. She put a hand on Ren's shoulder. Another cone of silence filled the room, although this one was neither as long nor as awkward as before.  
  
Steve looked at his watch. It was almost 11 o'clock. He decided to be the one to break the silence this time. "It's getting late. Poor Louis has been in his room most of the night." He got up and headed toward the staircase. Louis never even heard his father coming. Steve got to the bottom of the stairwell and started to take a step when he saw his youngest son sitting there at the top of the steps. "LOUIS!"  
  
"Yeah, uh, hi, Dad," Louis said stupidly grinning. His grin faded quickly, he knew he was in trouble this time.  
  
"Come down here, NOW," Steve said sternly. Louis did as he was told. "Go sit down on the couch," he ordered. Louis once again did as he was told without a word. Ren and Eileen were still sitting in the living room. They had been talking quietly about other things.  
  
Ren and Eileen had by now quieted down and Steve began to interrogate Louis. "How much did you hear?" he asked. Louis raised his hands in defense and cowered back in his seat. Eileen spoke up,  
  
"Steve, what are you doing? What did Louis do?"  
  
"I'm asking our son a few questions because he was sitting on the top step instead of in his room where I asked him to stay until I told him it was okay to come down." Eileen sat back on the couch seemingly satisfied with her husband's answer. "Louis," Steve repeated, "how much did you hear?" Louis knew when he had been defeated.  
  
"Is it true," he started slowly, "that Ren is going to be a mom?"  
  
Ren answered, "it's true," she sighed. She unconsciously placed her hand on her stomach, something she had been avoiding for a week and a half. When she realized what she was doing she immediately moved her hand back to the armrest. She looked over at her brother. "Please don't say anything to anybody," she pleaded.  
  
Louis looked her straight in the eye and said, "I promise. I won't tell Twitty or Beans, I won't even tell Tawny. I'm still going to be worried about you though."  
  
"Thanks, Louis," Ren smiled giving her younger brother a big hug. She looked at the clock. "It's really late. I'm going to bed. Goodnight," Ren said. She walked over to both of her parents and gave them hugs too. They wished her 'goodnight' and 'sweet dreams' and said that they would talk in the morning. As for Louis they decided that if Ren wasn't angry with him then they should just let him off the hook.  
  
It was well after midnight when the Stevens' household was finally tucked away in bed and dreaming peacefully despite the evening's events.  
  
Ren was the first person to wake up in the Stevens' home due to a little business that she had to take care of. She had wanted to go back to bed, but had decided that she should just go downstairs and make an attempt to eat breakfast without having to get "reacquainted" with it.  
  
Ren made the short trek from her and Louis' bathroom to the kitchen. She looked in the cupboards. Nothing looked appetizing. She searched the fridge and freezer, but found nothing she really wanted, so just for the sake of eating something, she poured herself a glass of orange juice and grabbed a package of mini muffins and then went into the living room to watch T.V.  
  
The loudness of the television startled Ren the moment she turned it on, nearly causing her to dump her orange juice all over the couch. She hadn't realized it had been so loud the night before. She didn't even remember turning the volume up. She hoped that the noise hadn't woken anybody else in the house up being that it was only 8 o'clock in the morning. She immediately turned the sound down, but it was too late, Louis was up and came downstairs a few moments later.  
  
"Morning, Sis," he greeted her.  
  
"Good Morning, Louis?" Ren replied, puzzled. Her brother hated getting up early. Especially on the weekend. He sat down on the couch next to her.  
  
"Whatcha watchin'?" he asked. Ren sighed. She honestly didn't know what she was going to watch. Normally, she'd sleep in on the weekend and then go out and do something for the community. That was just the way she was. Luckily for her, she didn't have anything going on this particular Saturday.  
  
"I don't know," she replied. "Do you know of anything good on?" Louis shrugged and shook his head. Ren handed him the remote. "Here, find something," she told him. Louis did hesitate to take the remote out of his sister's hand. And it wasn't long before he made his way to the all cartoon channel.  
  
Ren slouched back on the couch. She couldn't remember the last time she had sat down on a Saturday morning and watched cartoons with her little brother. The station played the older cartoons in the mornings, but it didn't matter to her. She was able to relax for the first time in ages. She laughed as a cartoon tree lifted up its bark like a skirt and started doing a ballet with the cartoon bushes and cartoon flowers. She felt like a child again. She smiled as she thought about what it would be like to wake up with her own child on Saturday mornings to watch cartoons. The thought ended as her parents descended the stairs.  
  
"Good morning, Honey," Eileen said.  
  
"Good morning, Ren," Steve said.  
  
"Good morning," Ren and Louis said in unison.  
  
"I didn't know you were awake, Louis," Eileen said. "Good morning to you too."  
  
"Yeah, it certainly is a surprise that you're up so early," Steve said. "Ren, your mother and I need to talk to you. Could you please come into the kitchen?" Ren got up from her seat on the couch, taking her empty glass with her, and went into the kitchen to talk with her parents as she was asked. Louis turned around on the couch to ask a question.  
  
"Hey, Dad, uh. Do I have to go up to my room again, since well, I already sorta know about the situation?"  
  
"You don't have to go up to your room. Just, uh, stay in the living room and watch T.V.," Steve answered.  
  
"Okay. Can do," Louis said. Steve walked into the kitchen and sat down with his wife and daughter at the table.  
  
"Okay. What do you need to talk to me about?" Ren asked smiling. She felt like a whole new person this morning. She was through crying. She had said goodbye to her tears and never looked back. She was going to listen to her parents and accept whatever they had to say to her.  
  
Eileen was the first to speak, "well, we need to talk to you about what you're going to do if you really are um, uh, going to be a mom. I, I, I know that you took a home pregnancy test last night, but you need to go to the hospital and find out for sure. And if the test comes out positive, which I have very little doubt it will turn out otherwise, then you're going to have to tell Mr. and Mrs. Deaver and Bobby. I can probably get an appointment for you for Monday, but I can't guarantee that it won't be during school, unless you don't mind missing a few classes." Ren looked down at the table and back up at her mom. She wasn't crying, or even upset, but she wasn't smiling anymore.  
  
"That's fine, Mom. I think I can make up any work that I miss, that is if you can only make the appointment during school," Ren said. "The sooner, the better, right?" she said as cheerfully as she could. Her parents weren't very happy to be having this discussion with their young daughter.  
  
"Well, I'll go make that call now," Eileen said standing up from her chair. "The sooner, the better, right?" she was smiling a little, but it wasn't a joyful smile. Ren was starting to feel a little uncomfortable and she was getting antsy. She looked over at her father who was eating a bowl of cereal. She had to turn away before it made her sick though. She looked over at her mother; Eileen was on the phone with the doctor's office trying to make an appointment. Steve got up and put his empty cereal bowl in the sink; he sat back down and picked up the Saturday paper. Ren looked down at her fingers then asked her father a question.  
  
"You and Mom aren't going to, um, kick me out or disown me or anything like that, are you?" she asked unsteadily. Steve looked up from what he was doing. He was shocked to hear that question being asked by his daughter.  
  
"Of course not, Sweetie! Now where would you get an idea like that? Your mother and I love you very much. Just because you make a mistake, and this one's a doozy, doesn't mean we're going to love you any less, or that we'd kick you out." Ren was staring down at the table again, but she wasn't upset, just a little embarrassed that she asked such a stupid question. "Look at me," Steve ordered. Ren obeyed. "Everything is going to turn out fine. Your mother and I are behind you all the way, no matter what kind of trouble you're in." Ren smiled wanly at her father. "Come here," he said, "you look like you could use a hug." She walked over to her dad and was embraced by him. It was the best, most reassuring hug she had ever been given.  
  
"Thanks, Dad," she whispered. Eileen was still talking on the phone. Ren could hear her profusely thanking whoever was on the other end.  
  
"Thank you, thank you, so very much! Okay. Um hmm. All right. Okay, thank you. I'll tell her. Okay. You too. Bye-bye." Eileen hung up the phone and sat back down at the table. "Ren, Honey. I suggest you drink a lot of water. They were able to squeeze in an appointment for you today. Hurry up and get dressed, your appointment's at 12:30. I'll grab a couple bottles of water for you."  
Steve offered to stay home with Louis and maybe do a few chores while the two girls were gone.  
  
Louis was so zoned out watching T.V. that he didn't even notice what was going on around him.  
  
Ren was dressed and ready to go by quarter after eleven. Eileen was ready a few minutes later. "Ready to go, Ren?" she asked.  
  
"Yeah, Mom. I'm ready," Ren replied.  
  
"Okay, let's go!" Eileen said handing Ren a couple of bottles of water "drink those," she told her daughter. Ren was confused, but she took the bottles anyway. Then they got into the car and started on their way to Sacramento General Hospital.  
  
Widow Shark: (huffing and puffing like she's out of breath) Whew! That was a long chapter, but it's finally finished.  
  
Imagine Nation: (my lovely muse) You call THAT a long chapter Widow Shark.  
  
W.S: I certainly do. It's almost a page and a half longer than the other three chapters.  
  
I.N: (being extremely sarcastic) Oh. Wow. A page and a half longer. Well, whoop-de-doo.*  
  
* "Oh. Wow..de-doo" These comments are to be ignored. They are not important. 


	5. The Waiting Game

Disclaimer: I do not own Even Stevens. The Walt Disney Co. does. Only the idea for this story belongs to me.  
  
Thanks once again to artsigirl16, Spinelli Woods, Esquire and to my newest fan, squirrelie-yuna (I hope I spelled your pen name right), for the reviews. : )  
  
A/N: Yay! The new format worked. I'm going to do that every chapter for the rest of the story. I apologize for not updating this last week or so. Just a warning the next few chapters may be a little short and few and far between. The reason: I am very busy with schoolwork and scholarship apps, but don't lose hope; I will finish this story. I'm no quitter.  
  
Imagine Nation: (for anyone who doesn't know, she's my muse). What do you mean you're no quitter? You always want to qui--- (I shut her up by putting my hand over her mouth.)  
  
W. S: Just ignore her, she doesn't know what she's saying. Now, on with the story!  
  
Ren's Perfect Mistake  
Chapter 5: The Waiting Game  
  
Waiting in the doctor's office was like sitting at the bus stop for the two o'clock bus and it was already three o'clock. Needless to say, Dr. Roscoe, Eileen's obstetrician, was running a little behind. Ren picked up a magazine and started flipping through the pictures while using as a shield to block staring and glaring eyes.  
  
Besides the many toddlers playing at their respective mothers' feet, Ren was the youngest person in the room. She glanced up at the clock on the far wall. It was almost a quarter after one and her appointment was supposed to be at half past noon. She looked towards the receptionist's desk, hopeful that the next name she called out would be hers. The receptionist picked up the clipboard and called out another handful of names, "Lewis, Cohen, Williams, and Hathaway," but no Stevens.  
  
Ren sighed and slid back in her more than uncomfortable plastic chair. She began staring at the clock again. It seemed, to her, that hours had passed, but in reality it was only minutes. And not only that, the two bottles of water she drank on the way to the hospital were finally catching up to her. She tried not to think about it.  
  
Ren looked back over at the receptionist who had picked up the clipboard again. The receptionist turned on the microphone; Ren crossed her fingers. Then, finally, at the end of another string of names, was "Stevens."  
  
Eileen and Ren both stood up and walked over to the desk.  
  
"Here, fill these out while you're waiting for the doctor," the receptionist said handing Eileen a handful of paperwork. "The doctor will be with you in just a moment."  
  
"Thanks," Eileen said with a hint of sarcasm.  
  
"I thought we were called to go in there. I'm so tired of waiting," Ren whined. She was somewhat frustrated.  
  
"It shouldn't be much longer, Honey. I'm tired of waiting too," Eileen said, rubbing her daughter's back.  
  
Ren looked around the room again and smiled a little as she noticed that the number of people who were in the room had thinned out dramatically. Eileen had finished filling out the papers and got up to give them to the receptionist.  
  
"All finished," Eileen said. The receptionist didn't even look away from her computer.  
  
"Thanks. Maria will show you to a room."  
  
"Thank you," Eileen said, meaning it this time. "Ren, Honey, come on." Ren looked up when she heard her name.  
  
"Coming!" Ren shouted. She got up from her chair and followed her mom and Maria.  
  
Maria led the Stevens women to a small room in the back and asked them to please wait there until Dr. Roscoe came; she left, closing the door behind her.  
  
The doctor knocked on the door and waited for someone to answer before she came in. "Hello, Senator Stevens," she said cheerfully. "It's so nice to see you again."  
  
"It's nice to see you again too, Dr. Roscoe. I don't know if you remember, but this is my daughter, Ren."  
  
"This is Ren? The last time I saw her she was still nursing. She's grown into a beautiful young woman, Senator."  
  
"Thank you, Doctor," Eileen said.  
  
"Okay, let's get started. If I could just ask Ren to step out of the room until we're finished, things would go much quicker." Eileen shook her head, quickly snapping herself out of a sort of trance.  
  
"Wait, hold on a sec, Dr. Roscoe. This appointment isn't for me. It's for my daughter." Dr. Roscoe seemed to have been in a trance of her own, but just as quickly snapped out of it. She apologized profusely for the misunderstanding. "No hard feelings. I was just as surprised, if not more, as you are now when she told me and my husband last night. I'll be in the waiting room if you need me," Eileen said walking out of the room.  
  
"All right, Mom," Ren said. She really didn't want her mom to go, but she was almost an adult now and could listen to the doctor's instructions.  
  
"Well, the sooner we get started, the sooner we can find out if you're pregnant, right?" Dr. Roscoe asked. Ren nodded. "I bet you took a home pregnancy test, huh? Well, those things aren't always right, but they're not always wrong either." Dr. Roscoe was digging through a cupboard for something and found it a few minutes later. "Here they are," she said pulling out a new package of plastic cups with blank labels on them. She handed one to Ren and then gave her a felt tip marker. Ren was confused, but she wasn't about to run to her mom for help.  
  
"What are these for?" she asked.  
  
"Just fill out the information label on the cup on the lines provided first," the doctor answered. It only took Ren a few minutes to fill out her name, address, age, and telephone number on the cup's label.  
  
"Now what?"  
  
"Okay, follow me," she said walking out of the room and leading Ren down a short hallway. "Here's the ladies' room. I just need you to fill the cup for a urine sample." Ren's eyes grew wide.  
  
"You want me to pee in that little cup?" Ren said. 'Ew!' she thought silently.  
  
"Yep, and when you're done put this lid on it and bring it to me so I can test it."  
  
"It took Ren less than ten minutes to do her 'business' and take the sample back to Dr. Roscoe.  
  
"Thank you, Miss Stevens. You can go sit with your mom in the waiting room. It'll only take a few minutes for the results to come back. Okay?" Ren nodded and went into the waiting room and sat down next to her mother.  
  
"Well, what did the doctor say?" Eileen asked.  
  
"She said to wait here until the results came back and that it would only take a few minutes," Ren told her mother. And wait they did. And wait, and wait, and wait. In reality though, it had only been fifteen minutes.  
  
The receptionist called out the name Stevens again and asked Ren and Eileen to follow her to a different small room in the back where the doctor came in only a few short minutes later. The door was left open this time, so Dr. Roscoe didn't need to knock, she just made her presence known and walked in. She was carrying a manila folder.  
  
"Let's just get right to business," Dr. Roscoe said. "Ren," she directed herself. "It's not easy for me to say this, but you are pregnant. The tests came back positive." Ren lowered her eyes and looked at the checkered floor.  
  
"Thank you, Dr. Roscoe," Eileen said. She hugged her daughter. "Everything will be all right, you'll see. Come on, let's go home." Eileen and Ren were about to stand up to leave, but Dr. Roscoe stopped them.  
  
"Wait, before you go, I wanted to give some information about teen pregnancy and I need you to make an appointment for your first ultrasound. I also want you to pick up a bottle of prenatal vitamins. Here are the instructions for starting out. Although, I recommend starting with only half a pill; it's easier on the stomach," she said handing Ren the manila folder. It was filled with a bunch of pamphlets.  
  
"Thank you, Doctor," Eileen said again. "Come on, Ren. Let's go home." The two women walked out of the small room and stopped at the receptionist's desk to make an appointment for the first ultrasound. Then they left the hospital and went to the pharmacy to pick up the vitamins.  
  
By the time Eileen and Ren finally got home, it was already four o'clock. It was quiet when they walked in. Louis wasn't there and there was a note on the fridge from Steve saying he had to go to work for something and wouldn't be back until after six.  
  
It had been a long morning and an even longer day, so needless to say both women were exhausted and it didn't take either of them long to find comfortable spots and fall asleep.  
  
A/N 2: Okay. One other short, little note. I'm not sure what really goes on at a real OB/GYN so if I made any mistakes, please forgive me. I wrote this chapter to the best of my knowledge. Also, does anybody know what Mr. Stevens does for a living? 


	6. Telling and Not Telling

Disclaimer: I do not own Even Stevens. The Walt Disney Co. does. Only the idea for this story belongs to me.  
  
Thanks to everyone who has reviewed my story so far. I'm so excited that so many people like it; you're all such gems! Also, thanks to anyone who answered my question. It might help me in later chapters.  
  
A/N: Hello All! Widow Shark here. Just a short note, this chapter has come a lot sooner than I expected it to, but I don't know about the rest of the story. Don't worry; I will finish it one day, maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but hopefully soon. Keep smiling and be the gems you are and review. Ta. Ta.  
  
Here it is, Chapter 6!  
  
Ren's Perfect Mistake  
Chapter 6: Telling and Not Telling  
  
Eileen opened her eyes and sleepily stood up from the couch as soon as she heard the front door being unlocked. She fluffed out her hair where it had been matted down from sleeping on it and looked at the clock on the V.C.R. It was five-thirty. Steve wouldn't be home yet. She didn't know who it was. Then the door opened and Donny walked in, setting a full garbage bag on the floor in front of him.  
  
"Hey, Mom!" Donny said. Eileen was still a bit tired.  
  
"Oh, hi, Donny. I didn't," she paused to yawn, "know you were coming home today." She yawned again.  
  
"Yeah, it was just sort of a last minute decision. I ran out of money and I need to do my laundry (which of course really means 'Mom' needs to do my laundry). So, what's for dinner, Mom?" Donny said making a B-line for the kitchen.  
  
"I'm glad you're home, Son," she sighed following Donny. By the time she got to the kitchen, he was already digging through the cupboards for pots and pans and food. He wasn't being too quiet about it either. Eileen hushed her oldest son, "Donny!" she whispered loudly and he gave up what he was doing. "Donny, please be a little quieter. Your sister's sleeping." Just then, Ren came down the stairs, rubbing her eyes.  
  
"No, I'm not," she said groggily. "And Donny didn't wake me up. I was ready to get up any way." Ren sat down at the kitchen table and rested her chin in her hands, elbows on the tabletop. Her hair was a mess and her makeup was smeared. She closed her eyes for a brief second and opened them again when her older brother sat down in the chair next to her. Eileen started scrounging through the cupboards for something to make for dinner, but could find nothing. She finally decided to ask Ren if there was anything she wanted.  
  
"Not really," Ren replied. "I'm not all that hungry."  
  
Eileen just rolled her eyes. "You may not be hungry now, but you have to eat something." Ren was a little annoyed, perhaps it was just hormones, but even if it wasn't, she knew she wouldn't and couldn't win this argument. Her mother had three times the advantage.  
  
"Can I think about what I want? Maybe I'll be hungrier later," Ren said, sitting up in the chair. Donny asked her a question.  
  
"You feelin' all right, Ren?" It was an innocent enough question. Donny had no idea what was going on.  
  
"I'll tell ya later, Don," Ren said. She was still so tired. And she had slept a good hour. "Are Dad and Louis home yet?" she asked.  
  
"No, but they should be home soon, Honey." She paused for a moment, thinking. "Hey, I know! Why don't you call Alan and ask if Louis is over there? I'm sure that's where he went." Ren sighed, then grabbed the phone and dialed Alan Twitty's phone number. The phone rang only twice before Twitty answered.  
  
"Hello?" he asked.  
  
"Hello, Twitty? Is Louis over there?" Ren asked.  
  
"Oh, hi, Ren. No, actually, Louis just left to go home a couple minutes ago," Twitty said.  
  
"Okay, thanks. You too. Bye," Ren said hanging up the phone. "Louis should be home in a few minutes," she reported to her mom.  
  
"That's good. Have you thought about where you wanted to go for dinner? I haven't had the chance to go shopping yet."  
  
"Actually, Mom. I don't really feel like going out tonight. There's just so much going on. And I still have to tell Bobby and his parents." Eileen gave her daughter a hug.  
  
"It's okay, Honey," she said releasing Ren from the embrace.  
  
"I'm going to go tidy up real quick. I imagine I look like something the cat dragged in," Ren said hurrying up the stairs to her bedroom. She changed her clothes and ran her hands over her stomach; everything still fit the same and she hadn't gained weight: that she could tell. She looked at herself in the mirror and told herself that she needed to tell Bobby and his parents tonight. Then she touched up her make-up and brushed her hair before going back downstairs where her mother was waiting for her. Donny was still sitting at the table, but as always, was oblivious to everything going on around him.  
  
Eileen was a bit stunned. "You changed clothes?" she shrugged and her face lit up as she remembered her idea for dinner. "How do you feel about ordering a pizza?" Eileen said cheerfully.  
  
"You read my mind," Ren said. "Can we get a meat lover's special?"  
  
"Anything you want, Ren," Eileen told her. The door opened and Louis walked in nearly tripping over Donny's garbage bag full of dirty clothes.  
  
"Oops! Sorry, Lou," Donny said returning from Oblivion. "I guess I forgot to move it."  
  
"That's all right... Donny? I thought this was your weekend at school," Louis shrugged. "Hi, Ma."  
  
"Good afternoon, Louis. Did you have fun at Alan's?" she asked.  
  
"Yeah, you know. Played a few video games. Watched T.V. Guy stuff. So, what's for dinner?"  
  
Eileen smiled. Ren rolled her eyes. "Mom's ordering pizza," she told her younger brother.  
  
"Mmm. I like pizza. 'Specially with bacon on it," came an all too familiar voice from down the hall; startling everyone in the kitchen.  
  
"How did HE get in here...again?" Ren whispered to her mom. "I thought Dad changed the locks." Eileen gave her daughter a Cheshire-cat grin.  
  
"I don't know, Honey. You'll have to ask your father when he gets home," she whispered back through clenched teeth. Beans, now ten, walked over to the Stevens' refrigerator and began ransacking it all in search of his favorite pork product. Meanwhile, Donny slipped out of the kitchen and went upstairs to hide from the annoying little kid.  
  
"Hey, did you know you're out of bacon?" he said. Louis walked around behind Ren.  
  
"Captain Obvious strikes again!" he whispered in her ear.  
  
"Can I stay for dinner?" the pesky kid asked as he always did. "My mom and dad are out of town."  
  
Normally Eileen would have taken pity on the child and said it was okay for him to stay and have dinner with them, but tonight was different. She hated doing it, and she's only had to do it a few times before. Eileen squatted down to Beans' height and took his chubby little hands in her own. "Bernard," she began, "I'm sorry, but you can't eat with us tonight." She looked into his cheerless eyes and his normally smiling face was now covered by a small, pitiful frown. "I'm sorry, but there's a lot going on that you're still too young to understand."  
  
"That's all right, Mrs. Stevens," he said looking down at the ground. Eileen could feel his heart breaking.  
  
"I'll tell ya what, Bernard. Why don't I call the Twittys and you can eat with them tonight? How's that sound?"  
  
Beans' eyes lit up again and the smile returned to his chubby cheeks. Eileen dialed the phone number and pleaded with Mr. Twitty to let the little nuisance eat with them. Eileen was so desperate she even offered to pay for dinner out. That did it for Mr. Twitty.  
  
"You will? Oh, thank you, Mr. Twitty. By six-fifteen? Okay. You too. Thank you, bye-bye." Eileen hung up the phone and walked back over to Beans. "Bernard, Honey. Do you have all of your things? Mr. Twitty will be here in a few minutes to pick you up."  
  
"Yeah, I have everything. Thanks!" he said; his cheery smile could brighten anyone's day. Eileen smiled back at him then turned to Ren and Louis and whispered an 'okay.' The doorbell rang a couple minutes later and Beans was out the door and in the Twittys' car before you could say "sizzling bacon." Eileen handed Mr. Twitty money for dinner and stood on the front porch and waved "goodbye" until his car was out of sight.  
  
Eileen went back into the kitchen and sat down at the table with Ren and Louis. "I can't believe I was able to get him out of here so quickly. Where's Donny?"  
  
"He's hiding from Beans," Louis answered. "I don't think he knows the kid's gone."  
  
"Thanks, Lou. Donny," she yelled, "it's safe to come down now. Beans is gone." Donny plundered down the staircase.  
  
"Good. That kid is such a pest," Donny said walking into the kitchen, and then taking a seat at the table.  
  
"I still can't believe I was able to get him out of here so quickly," Eileen said in awe.  
  
"Well you did, and you did a great job, Mom," Ren said a little bit agitated. "I've been thinking too. I want to get this whole mess out into the open; I have to get this weight off my chest. Tonight. So, can I invite the Deavers to dinner?" Eileen nodded and handed her daughter the cordless phone.  
  
Ren stood up and walked into the living room, plopping herself down on the couch. She dialed the number that must have been etched onto her brain from the first time she heard it. Her heart was pounding; the phone was ringing. One ring, no answer. Two rings, still no answer. The phone began ringing a third time when someone answered the phone.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"Hi, is Bobby there?" Ren asked nervously. As it turned out, it was Bobby's dad.  
  
"Yeah, hold on, Ren. Bobby! Phone!" Ren could hear the phones being switched in the background.  
  
"Hello, who is this?" he asked.  
  
"Hi, Bobby. It's Ren. I just called to invite you and your parents over to dinner tonight. It's nothing big, just pizza. But, I do have something really important to tell you. And I think that your parents need to know too." Ren bit her lip as she waited for his response.  
  
"Hold on, let me go tell my parents. What time did you want us over there?" he asked. Ren had been caught off-guard.  
  
"Uh, um. Seven sounds good."  
  
"Hold on," she heard Bobby say. Then she heard him put the phone down on a hard surface. A couple minutes later he picked it up again. "We'll be there. See you then, Ren. I love you. Bye"  
  
"I love you, too," Ren said. "Bye." She hung up and walked back into the kitchen handing the phone back to her mother. "They're coming for dinner," she said.  
  
"Who's coming for dinner?" Steve said making everyone jump out of their seats. No one had heard him walk in.  
  
"The Deavers," Ren said. "I'm going to tell them tonight," she sighed. Steve gave her a hug. Steve noticed that Donny had come home.  
  
"Hey, Son. I didn't know you were coming home this weekend," he said. "Ah, well. I'm glad you're home." Donny looked hopelessly confused.  
  
"What does Ren have to tell the Deavers tonight?" Donny asked. Ren looked up at her parents with a 'should I tell him now?' look. Eileen and Steve nodded. Ren nodded back; she knew she had to tell her older brother sometime. She leaned over and put her hands in his.  
  
"Donny," she said, biting her lower lip as she did. "Louis, you come here too, even though I'm sure you already know." Louis came back over by his older siblings and sat down in the chair next to Ren. "This is really hard for me to say, but..." she paused. "Donny, Louis; it was confirmed today that I'm pregnant. You're both going to be uncles." Ren smiled, not because she was happy she was pregnant at seventeen, but because the huge weight of telling her brothers was lifted off her chest. Louis got up and hugged his sister.  
  
"If there's anything you need. Anything at all, you tell me Ren. You hear?" Louis ordered his sister. Ren only crossed her arms and was about to say something in the area of 'I am perfectly capable of doing things for myself... for now anyways' when the doorbell rang. Nobody had realized how late it was.  
  
"That must be the Deavers," Ren said. "I'll get the door." She walked over to the door and answered it. It was indeed the Deavers. "Come in," Ren said smiling. Bobby came in first, hugged her, and gave her a peck on the cheek. Mr. and Mrs. Deaver followed close behind. "Come in, have a seat," Ren told the Deavers. Then she whispered under her breath, "you're gonna need to." She saw to it that the Deavers found a comfortable spot in the living room. Bobby whispered to her that he wanted to know what was going on. Ren just told him to sit down with his parents, and he did.  
  
Mr. and Mrs. (Senator) Stevens went and sat down in the living room with their guests. Donny and Louis snuck upstairs. This wasn't a conversation they had any right to be part of. Ren walked over to the chair she was going to sit in, smoothed out her skirt, and sat down. Mr. Deaver started the conversation by asking the one question that every man has asked since the dawn of time.  
  
"So, what's for dinner?" Mr. Deaver asked. Mrs. Stevens answered,  
  
"Pizza, but we were waiting until you got here to order it. Is there anything, um, special that you want on it?" she asked, smiling politely, yet nervously.  
  
"Anything you want is fine by us, we're not picky eaters," Mr. Deaver replied. Mrs. Stevens stood up.  
  
"Why don't I go order that pizza now? Two large should be enough, right?" she said standing up and walking back into the kitchen to order the pizza. She came back a few minutes later. "Well, the pizza will be here in about forty-five minutes. Does anybody want anything to drink? We have water, lemonade, whiskey, vodka," she listed, emphasizing the alcoholic beverages. Mrs. Deaver spoke up for the three of them,  
  
"Um... no thank you, Senator. We're fine for now, but we were wondering what Ren's important news is," she finished.  
  
Ren breathed in deeply. "Here we go again," she whispered under her breath. Then she began: "Bobby, do you remember..."  
  
A/N 2: Aaahhh! The dreaded (or evil, whichever you care to call it) cliffhanger. Sorry I had to leave it like this. I have a lot of homework, so I wanted to get something posted for all you great people. The title of this chapter is 'Telling and Not Telling' after all (Authoress shrugs). Chapter 7 is coming soon...I hope.  
  
A note to the authoress' father: Daddy! If you're going to read my fanfiction, the least you could do is review it. Ahem. And no flames, thank you. 


	7. Aftermath and After Math

Disclaimer: I do not own Even Stevens. The Walt Disney Co. does. Only the idea for this story belongs to me.  
  
Thank you reviewers!  
  
A/N: Hello everybody! I'm back. I do apologize for leaving you hanging like that. I had a tiny bit of writer's block and some blasted homework. I don't know exactly when I'll have the next chapter done and posted either. However, I do have good news, no I did not just save a bunch of money on my car insurance by switching to Geico, I just think my writer's block is over (for now anyways) and I got my prom dress : ). AND NOW, the moment you've all been waiting for: Chapter 7. Enjoy. Please be the gems I know you all are and review, Review, REVIEW!  
  
Ren's Perfect Mistake  
Chapter 7: Aftermath and After Math  
  
Ren had done it. She'd told Bobby and his parents she was pregnant. Still, there was a weight on her that she couldn't lift. In fact, it seemed immovable. She looked at the clock again. There was another fifteen minutes before school let out for the day. To Ren, every second felt like a minute and every minute like an hour. And it was only Monday. She sighed heavily. Then felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned around quietly. The person sitting behind her handed her a folded up piece of paper. No doubt a note from Ruby.  
  
Ren opened the note and put it in her lap to read it. Mr. Marky, her math teacher, was too busy teaching some new equation that he wouldn't notice, even if she'd read it out loud. The note said:  
  
Hey Ren,  
  
What's up, Gurl? Not 2 much here. Why didn't you call me this weekend? Are you still upset over this whole situation? Did you tell Bobby about it? Cause if you didn't, you should. Anyways, g2g. Write me back. Love ya 4ever,  
  
Your friend, Rube  
  
Ren was about to get a piece of paper out to write a note back to Ruby when the teacher called out her name.  
  
"Miss Stevens, pink slip," Mr. Marky said monotonously. Ren stood up to retrieve her "ticket out of class" and she heard a lot of "aw, what did you do's" and "somebody's in trouble's" mostly coming from Larry Biel. Still, Ren held her head high. She wasn't worried about it; she knew exactly what it was for. On her way out the door, Mr. Marky reminded her of the homework that was due the next day.  
  
"Thank you, Mr. Marky," Ren said then walked out the door and down the hall to the main office. When she got there she found her parents were waiting for her. And Bobby and his parents were there too. They were all sitting in chairs outside of Principal Wexler's office.  
  
Ren said hello to the Deavers then took the seat farthest away from Bobby. She crossed her arms and leaned her head back. She was still fuming mad from Saturday night. Principal Wexler was yelling at someone behind the closed office door, but she didn't know who it was. She could hear bits and pieces like "I'm going to call your mother about this Miss.... If you're going to smoke...my school...I should suspend you...Blah, blah, blah, blah."  
  
Ren noticed her parents and Mr. and Mrs. Deaver were talking to each other about the "Situation." She glanced over to where Bobby was sitting and noticed that he was trying to ignore them. And her. Meanwhile, she could still hear small bits of Principal Wexler going on about smoking in school. She knew how angry he got over petty stuff like smoking in the bathroom, but she couldn't imagine what he would do when she told him her little secret. She could hear less and less of Principal Wexler's rants as the minutes passed, then at about ten after three, the door opened and a young girl came running out of the office. She was in tears and in very much of a hurry. Principal Wexler stepped out a few seconds later.  
  
"Good afternoon, Ren, Bobby. Mr. and Mrs. Stevens. Mr. and Mrs. Deaver. How are all of you this afternoon?" he greeted them. Ren smiled and waved a little. Her parents and the Deavers stood from their seats and shook hands with him. "I understand there is something that both of your families wanted to discuss with me," he paused, "so, why don't we go into my office and you can tell me what's going on?" He led the two families to his office and stepped out for a moment to make a personal phone call.  
  
'This is going to take a while,' Ren thought standing up moments after her parents and the others disappeared into the office. She followed them and sat down in the chair next to her mother.  
  
"Oh, there you are, Honey. I was just about to ask where you went," Eileen told her daughter.  
  
"Can we just get this over with?" Ren asked, whispering. "I'm tired and hungry. Plus I have homework..." Eileen put a finger to her daughter's lips to quiet her.  
  
"Shhh, Calm down, Ren. I don't want to be here either, but you have to tell Principal Wexler. And eventually, you'll have to tell the nurse and the teachers too." Ren nodded. She just hoped that Principal Wexler's reaction wouldn't mirror that of Bobby's. Ren looked across the small office at Bobby, his back was toward her, like a child. 'He really needs to grow up,' Ren thought. While she was sitting there, waiting for Principal Wexler to return like everyone else, her mind drifted back to Saturday evening when she told Bobby and his parents she was pregnant.  
  
~Flashback~  
  
"Bobby, do you remember what happened after your party on August 22?" she asked him nervously.  
  
"Yeah, what are you trying to get at, Ren? Where is this conversation leading to?" he asked somewhat maliciously. Ren looked down at the ground and back up to meet the staring eyes of Bobby's parents. Mrs. Deaver had a small frown on her face, signifying that she had a bad feeling. Ren was able to tell that Mr. Deaver was worried by the way he had begun wringing his hands. She took a deep breath and looked into Bobby's eyes and said,  
  
"Bobby, you know as well as I do that we didn't watch that movie after your parents went out to dinner that night." Mrs. Deaver looked as if she were about to cry. Mr. Deaver stopped wringing his hands and embraced his wife. Both of them were staring in the direction of their son. Bobby just glared at Ren.  
  
"Are you...are you saying," he paused and looked Ren in the eye, "what I think you're saying, Ren? Are you...?" Ren nodded. She felt like she was going to cry herself, but fought back the tears. Then Bobby started ranting. "How could you let this happen, Ren?"  
  
"I don't under..." she was about to say, but Bobby had cut her off.  
  
"This is going to RUIN MY LIFE, Ren. I'm only 17! I'm too young to be a dad. I ASSUMED you were on the pill." Both sets of parents could only sit back and watch. It was better for them to just let the two teens yell; and blow off some steam.  
  
"Bobby, I never said I was on 'the pill'!" she yelled back at him, "so I guess that makes an ASS out of U and..." She was cut off again.  
  
"I thought you were responsible. YOU should have been the one to stop us. WE might not be..."  
  
"BUT WE ARE!" Ren yelled back; finally able to cut HIM off. "Do you think I'm happy about this situation either? Well, I'm NOT. Oh, in case you forgot, I'm the same age as you. And guess what, Bobby; GUESS what I learned in bio? Go on GUESS!" she ranted. "GIVE UP? All right, I'll tell you what I learned. I LEARNED that it takes TWO to make a baby. It Takes TWO, Bobby! So I don't want to hear it anymore. I'm pregnant with YOUR baby," she said lowering her voice, "so you're just as much at fault as I am," Ren finished and then stomped up the stairs to her bedroom to calm down; and didn't come down again until the pizza came.  
  
Everyone was unusually quiet during dinner except for both sets of expectant-grandparents. They had talked the whole thing through while they had hoped their children were cooling their tempers. Neither had seen their children so angry before. Bobby was acting immature and Ren was upset because of Bobby's childishness. They didn't say one word, or so much as glance at each other during dinner.  
  
Ren had gone immediately back upstairs after eating, but when she heard the Deavers leaving, she opened her window and screamed once again to Bobby, "IT TAKES TWO!" Then she slammed the window shut and smiled to herself, she had had the last word.  
  
~End Flashback~  
  
Principal Wexler walked back into his office where both families were patiently waiting. "I'm so sorry about that, my mother fell down yesterday so I just wanted to call and check up on her."  
  
"Oh, you don't have to explain yourself to us," Mr. Deaver said.  
  
"Okay, well why don't we get down to business?" he said sitting down at his large, but cluttered desk. "Now what was it that your families wanted to discuss with me?"  
  
Ren cleared her throat forcefully and then just said it, "Principal Wexler," she paused. "You're not gonna want to hear this, but... I'm pregnant. There, I said it." She sighed heavily then looked back over at Bobby who was still acting like an immature little brat. She could picture him turning around and sticking his tongue out at her whilst holding his hands above his head pretending they were moose antlers as he had often done in elementary school. Instead he just turned around in his seat and faced the principal.  
  
The smile that was usually pasted on Principal Wexler's face quickly disappeared. "What? This must be some kind of a joke," he said laughing, and then he stopped. "Isn't it?" he questioned.  
  
"I'm afraid not, Principal Wexler. I wish I were only joking, but I'm really pregnant...with Bobby's baby," she said hanging her head. Principal Wexler just stared into space for a few moments in shock before speaking again.  
  
"My prize student is going to be a teen mother?" he asked, regaining his train of thought. "I thought you were more responsible, more cautious than this. Well, I suppose you'll be dropping out of school after you have this child; with the rest of the teen mothers," he said shaking his head.  
  
Eileen spoke up, "actually, that's what we came here to talk about, Principal Wexler. You see, Ren and I talked about this yesterday," she said. "Ren doesn't want to drop out of school after the baby's born, and if at all possible, we wanted to know if she'd be able to pick up where she left off, and if not, we were wondering about other options."  
  
"I'm sorry to tell you this, Senator Stevens, but our school has had such a low number of teen pregnancies that we offer no other options, but I can see about having her transferred..."  
  
"I don't want to be transferred, Principal Wexler," Ren interrupted. "I have enough confidence in myself that I can continue going to school here to the very last possible minute if need be... and still succeed. I just might have to drop out of a few clubs and activities and probably slow down a little, okay maybe a lot, but I can do it! Please don't have me transferred..." she pleaded.  
  
"Alright, Miss Stevens, but you know a lot of people look up to you, if your 'condition' becomes a problem, I will have you AND," he emphasized, "Bobby transferred to Greendale High, even if you don't want to."  
  
"Yes, Sir," Ren said. "I understand and I was planning on keeping my 'condition' a secret for as long as I possibly can."  
  
"Ren," Bobby finally spoke up. "You can't hide a pregnancy that long. You're gonna gain weight. People are gonna notice when you have trouble getting up from your desk..."  
  
"Bobby!" Ren shouted back. "I realize that I'm gonna gain weight. But you know what, you can keep your mouth shut too. If nothing gets said in the first place, rumors don't get started and everyone can live in ignorant bliss." The adults sat watching the teen parents-to-be fight about their "situation." It was heart-breaking for each of their parents to see their children fight with each other over a mistake that would hopefully be considered as a blessing in the future. Principal Wexler finally had to put a foot down.  
  
"Children!" he yelled. "Enough, now calm down and you two can discuss this as adults." Bobby and Ren did as they were told. "Now, why don't you two move your chairs closer to each other instead of being so distant. You need to work together if you are going to be responsible parents." They once again did as they were told. Once they had sat down again Ren mouthed the words 'it takes two' so that Bobby could see her. She could see him getting angry about it, but he kept his mouth shut. "That's better," Principal Wexler said. "Now, can you two tell me why you're behaving like such little children?"  
  
Ren spoke first, "he started it. He blamed me for getting pregnant when it's just as much his fault as it is mine. He knows it takes two." She was glaring at him by now, and Bobby was just as guilty for glaring back.  
  
"Well, if you hadn't decided to stay..." Bobby began, but his mother cut him off.  
  
"Bobby, Sweetie. You and Ren both made a mistake. She's already learned to live with it and she's the one it affects the most. I think you need to grow up a little too. You're acting like such a big baby. You and Ren need to work out your problems with each other before you become parents." She paused. "Ren's right you know, it does take two." Bobby finally broke down.  
  
"I know, Mom. I know. I'm just so scared; I don't know anything about babies or pregnancy." Tears were starting to form in his eyes. His mother hugged him. He wiggled his way out and looked at Ren. A single tear ran down his cheek. "I'm so sorry, Ren. I didn't mean what I said the other night at your house. Can you ever forgive me?" he asked. Ren thought about it for a second, then bit her bottom lip and answered.  
  
"Yes. Yes, I can forgive you, Bobby. I just need to know that you understand we're in this together. For life. I want to know that you understand that it takes two."  
  
He embraced Ren sideways, and then whispered in her ear, "it takes two, Ren. It takes two."  
  
"Thank you, Bobby. I forgive you," she said giving him a kiss on the cheek. The huge weight was finally lifted. Principal Wexler was sitting calmly at his desk listening to the two teens. He glanced up at his clock.  
  
"Would you look at the time?" he said. "It's already after four o'clock. I have to get going, but before you go, Bobby, Ren," he addressed them. "I have a card for you. For counseling, if you ever need it again," he said handing them two business cards for a marriage counselor.  
  
"Thank you, Principal Wexler," Ren said raising an eyebrow. She quickly remembered something, "Oh, I almost forgot, is there any way I can get a memo out to all of my teachers, and the school nurse, about my little 'situation'?" she asked.  
  
"Why don't you just come down here first thing in the morning, Ren?" Principal Wexler said. "It's getting late and I need to get home. And so do all of you. Thank you, all of you, for coming in and telling me about this today." He shook hands once again with the Deavers and the Stevens. Then he grabbed his coat and briefcase and locked his office door behind him. "I'll see you tomorrow, Ren," he said before exiting as fast as he could, leaving the two families in his dust, so to speak. Mr. and Mrs. Deaver left soon after.  
  
Ren and Bobby had drifted off to one side of the office and were speaking civilly to each other again and holding hands. She looked into his eyes and spoke first,  
  
"I'm sorry, too, Bobby," she told him quietly.  
  
"What for? I'm the one who was being a jackass about it," he said cupping her face in his large hand. She leaned her head on his should.  
  
"We'll get through this, Bobby. We're not the first, and we certainly aren't the last, but could you just promise me one thing?" she asked.  
  
"Anything."  
  
"Promise me you won't tell anybody about this. At least not yet. People don't need to know."  
  
"I promise, Ren," Bobby said. "I mean it too." He squeezed her in for a hug, but she pulled away quickly. "What, what's wrong now?" he asked.  
  
Ren pushed a strand of long hair behind her ears. Her cheeks were a little flushed. "Not so tight, Bobby. I'm just a little tender up there, right now."  
  
"I'm sorry," he said, blushing a little himself at catching her drift. "Well, I have to get going," he said, giving her a peck on the cheek instead.  
  
"See ya, Bobby," Ren said putting her backpack on over one shoulder. "Let's go home," she said addressing her parents who had waited for her.  
  
"I'm glad to see you and Bobby have made up for the time being," Mr. Stevens said. "We'll see you at home, Kiddo," he said grabbing his wife by the arm and walking out with her, elbows locked. Ren lingered behind a little. She was in a hurry to get home, but decided to take it a little slower. She needed the practice. She put a hand on her stomach.  
  
"Well, that wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Now let's just go home. It's been a long day." With that said, Ren walked the short distance to her car and drove home.  
  
A/N2: Sorry if it was a little short. Like I said, I had a little bit of writer's block, but I think it's cured. I'm going to start skipping months to make the story move just a little faster (i.e. there won't be too many doctors' visits in coming chapters). And I'm going to try to keep information about the progress of this story in my profile, so check it out once in a while. I'll try keep you posted. Thanks. Tootles. 


	8. Phone A Friend

Disclaimer: I do not own Even Stevens. The Walt Disney Co. does. Only the idea for this story belongs to me.  
  
Thanks to everyone who reviewed.  
  
Note to artsigirl16: You asked me a few questions in your last review. Here are my responses: assume that they are, ummm...no, and I'm not telling; you'll just have to continue reading. I hope these answer your questions. (My daddy called me ornery because of this response).  
  
A/N: Well, I'm back. I'm so sorry it's taken me so long to update (it's been three weeks, I know). You all know how it goes though. You can't ignore your homework forever and still get good grades. It doesn't work; I've tried it, countless times. Anyways, I'm only wasting time and hard drive space. Soooo, here it is, chapter 8. Please be the gems you are and review. Thanks.  
  
Ren's Perfect Mistake  
Chapter 8: Phone A Friend  
  
When Ren got home from school she didn't waste any time to run up to her bedroom and call Ruby. She had been so angry with Bobby over the weekend that she hadn't even realized that she forgot to call her best friend. She pressed speed-dial number one on her phone and waited until someone answered on the other line.  
  
"Hello?" Ruby's mom answered.  
  
"Hello, is Ruby there?" Ren asked.  
  
"Oh, hi, Ren, just a moment. Ruby. Telephone." Ren could hear her friend yelling in the background.  
  
"Coming, Ma. Got it," she said. Ren could hear Ruby's mother hang up the other phone. "Hello?"  
  
"Hey, Rube. Sorry I didn't call you this weekend. I was kinda busy," Ren said.  
  
"Oh. My. God, Ren. I tried calling you, like, ten times after school today. Where have you been?" Ruby asked concerned.  
  
"At school. Having a conference with my parents, Bobby and his parents, and Principal Wexler."  
  
"You didn't tell Bobby and his parents that you're," Ruby paused lowering her voice, "pregnant," she paused again and continued in a normal tone, "today after school?"  
  
"No. I told Bobby and his parents Saturday night over dinner. Let's just say it didn't go too well," Ren sighed. By now she was laying on her bed on her stomach. She kicked her shoes off and pulled her feet onto the bed, too.  
  
"What? Did you and Bobby get into a fight? 'Cause I was wondering why you two were avoiding each other all day," Ruby was practically yelling. Ren felt a little agitated.  
  
"It was more like a war, and nobody won," Ren sighed. Even though she and Bobby had made up less than an hour earlier, it hadn't really made her feel any better about anything.  
  
"So... what happened, Ren?" Ruby asked. Ren really didn't want to talk about it, but she did any way because it helped to talk to a friend.  
  
"Let's just say that Bobby's reaction was a little on the immature side. I think his parents took it a lot better than he did though," Ren told her friend.  
  
"Okay...so, if you told Bobby and his parents on Saturday, why did you guys have to meet with Principal Wexler?"  
  
"You should know as well as everyone else that I'm the principal's assistant and have been for the last," Ren paused calculating on her fingers, "five years," she finished.  
  
"Yeah. So, why does he have to know?" Ruby asked.  
  
"I'm not only an assistant to Principal Wexler, I'm a friend too. And I felt that he deserved to know," Ren said confidently.  
  
"You got a point there, Ren," Ruby said. She changed the subject on the instant. "So, was it at least Romantic?" she asked, catching Ren completely off-guard, as her mind had wandered in thought of what would happen in the future. "Ren?" Ruby asked.  
  
"Huh? Oh, yeah. Sorry, could you repeat that? I was just thinking..."  
  
"Yeah, sure, Ren. So, was IT," she emphasized, "at least romantic?"  
  
Ren was shocked; her best friend was asking her about a night in her life that she wished she could forget. "That's private!" Ren shouted. She paused and thought for a second. "But, if you really have to know," she sighed.  
  
"You're gonna tell me?" Ruby asked excitedly. Ren sat up on her bed "Indian-style" and cleared her throat.  
  
"Yes, but you have to promise me that you won't tell anybody about it. It's top secret, confidential, PRIVATE!"  
"I promise, Ren. I am locking my mouth and throwing away the key."  
  
"Good," Ren said smiling. Then she rolled her eyes, not that Ruby could see and continued. "It," she emphasized, "wasn't romantic. It was far from it. In fact, we were supposed to be watching a movie, but we both sorta...lost interest in it and found each other to be more entertaining." Ren was blushing; she was embarrassed that she had just told her best friend about her semi-non-existent sex-life. She continued, "it all happened so quickly, then it was over, and all we were left with was an awkward feeling..." Ren bit her lip. She was starting to get upset again. "Oh my God, Rube!" she cried. "I'm pregnant, I'm only seventeen. I'm not ready for this, Rube. I'm not ready to be a mom yet. Ruby, promise me one more thing."  
  
Ruby could hear her friend sniffling on the other line. "Shh, calm down, Ren. There's no reason to get all worked up. C'mon, you'll get through this, you'll see. You have your family and friends on your side. Now, tell me what you want me to promise you." Ren sniffled a little and breathed in deep before speaking again.  
  
"Promise me that you'll wait until you're married to have sex. I don't want you to have to go through what I'm going through.... I made a bad decision that I'm going to live with for the rest of my life. Please, just promise me. Promise me you'll wait until you're really ready," Ren finished and breathed in deep again. Ruby was almost in tears herself now. She couldn't stand seeing (or in this case, hearing) her best friend so upset.  
  
"You have my word, Ren." She could hear Ren getting upset again. "Hey, hey calm down, Ren. It'll be okay. Plus, you have options...if you can't take care of the baby..."  
  
"You know how I feel about abortion, Ruby!" Ren shouted. Ruby was taken completely off-guard, but at least Ren wasn't crying anymore.  
  
"I wasn't suggesting that. I mean; there're an awful lot of people out there who can't have children of their own..." Ren interrupted her.  
  
"I know, Rube. I'm sorry I got so mad at you, I know you were just trying to help." She sighed and blew a hair out of her face. "I don't want to sound selfish or anything, but I don't think I could ever sign a piece of myself away to total strangers." Ren had finally calmed down. "And what happens," she continued, "when they tell that child that he or she is adopted? Their natural instinct would be to find their birth parents." Ruby could sense her friend starting to get worked up again. Ren started getting louder, "And what happens, fifteen, twenty, twenty-five years from now when they come searching for me and actually find me. They're gonna want to meet me. Then there's always the possibility that I'll have a new life, with a husband and other children." Ruby was able to cut in for a brief second.  
  
"Ren, Calm Down!" Ren just ignored her and continued ranting.  
  
"That child, that I had given up would feel betrayed and start asking questions. A lot of which I don't think I could answer." Ren swallowed hard and took a deep breath. She sniffled a little, then wiped her eyes. "I'm so sorry, Rube. I just... I just needed to vent a little bit." Nobody answered. "Ruby?"  
  
"That's okay, Ren. I understand, you just feel like you're gonna explode if you don't get it out," Ruby responded.  
  
"Thanks, Rube. You're a great friend." There was a long pause. Then Ruby spoke up again.  
  
"Sooo," she began, "does that mean you're gonna keep the baby?" she asked.  
  
Ren nodded and bit her lower lip, then, realizing Ruby couldn't see her, gave an oral response, "yes." She wiped the remains of frustrated tears out of her eyes and changed the subject to something other than babies. Ren was so into the conversation she didn't even hear someone opening the door downstairs or anyone plodding up the steps.  
  
A few minutes later, in Louis's room...  
  
"Hey, Lou! What are we gonna do, I'm bored?" Twitty asked. He was lying on Louis's bed throwing a baseball up in the air and catching it.  
  
"Don't know. What do you want to do?" Louis replied. There were a couple seconds of silence and they could hear Ren giggling shrilly through the thin walls. Twitty looked quizzically at Louis. "Eh, she must be on the phone or somethin'," Louis yawned.  
  
"That gives me an idea," Twitty said mischievously. "You know, we could uh..." he stopped, raising one hand to his ear like the receiver of a telephone, "listen in," he finished.  
  
"I'm not so sure that's such a good idea, Twitty. I uh...uh," he said, clearing his throat. "I think we should leave her alone, give her some privacy." Twitty gave him a funny look.  
  
"You feelin' all right, Lou? 'Cause you've never turned down listening in on Ren before."  
  
"And we always get caught. Besides, it's different this time..."  
  
"What's different?" Twitty interrupted.  
  
"I can't tell you. I promised Ren. You'll, uh, find out soon enough what's going on," Louis told him. Then he whispered under his breath, "she won't be able to hide it forever." However, he wasn't quiet enough because Twitty heard him perfectly.  
"Hide what?" Twitty asked.  
  
"I told you, I can't say. I promised Ren." There was another moment of silence and the boys were able to hear Ren get off the phone. Then there was a knock on the bedroom door that startled both Louis and Twitty.  
  
"C...c...Come in!" Louis stammered. Ren opened the door and came in.  
  
"It's just me, Lou," she said. "Hey, Lou. Where are Mom and Dad? I thought they were coming home."  
  
"They called before you got back. Mom had a meeting at city hall as a guest speaker and Dad went to the office to make a few phone calls. Why?"  
  
"No reason," Ren answered. Then she noticed her brother's friend sitting on the bed. "Oh, hi, Twitty. What're you doing here?" she asked innocently.  
  
"H...h...Hi, R...r...Ren. We weren't listening to your conversation. I swear!" Twitty defended. Ren squinted her eyes, puzzled.  
  
"Nobody ever said you were," she paused, looking over at Louis, then pulling him by the shirt collar to a corner of his room. "What's up with him? You didn't tell him that I'm pregnant...did you?" she interrogated.  
  
"No, I swear I didn't. I made a promise to you, Sis. You have my word."  
  
"Tell me what?" Twitty asked. Ren gulped and turned around slowly to see her little brother's best friend staring back with suspicion.  
  
"Y...y...you heard that?" she asked.  
  
"Not the whole thing," he said. "Just when you asked him about telling me something. I was already starting to get suspicious when Louis muttered something about not being able to hide 'it' forever. So, you gonna tell me what 'it' is?"  
  
'There's no use in trying to deny anything. He's already suspicious,' Ren thought to herself. 'Suspicion has a way of ruining friendships and I don't want to do that to Louis, he's kept his word after all...' Ren turned to her brother and sighed heavily. "Call Tawny and tell her to come over. I might as well kill two birds with one stone." Louis was stunned and concerned.  
  
"You sure you wanna do this now, Ren?" Louis asked. Ren nodded. Twitty stood back and watched in confusion. Louis dug through a pile of clothes, both clean and not, to find his cordless phone. Once he had the receiver in his hand he turned it on and dialed Tawny Dean's phone number. He gave Ren a 'thumbs up' to signify that the phone was ringing, which, since Tawny discovered the Internet had become uncommon. Someone picked up the phone on the other line; it was Tawny.  
  
"Hello?" she asked.  
  
"Hi, Tawny," Louis said. "Um... what're you doing right now, Tawn?"  
  
"I was just going online. Why?" she asked suspiciously.  
  
"Cause, uh, I need you to, um, come over. There's something that, uh, Ren wants to, uh, tell you and Twitty," Louis stammered. He looked over at Ren who was giving him a "go on" look.  
  
Tawny sat down in her computer chair in her room. She was starting to get a little disgusted with Louis. "Can't it wait?" she asked.  
  
"NO!" Louis shouted. "I mean, um, no, it can't. It's really important."  
  
"Then can she tell me over the phone?" Tawny asked.  
  
"D'uh, hold on, just a sec." Louis looked over at Ren again. He covered the mouthpiece of the receiver and asked Ren if she could tell Tawny over the phone. Ren shook her head.  
  
"Give it here," she told her brother. Louis handed her the phone. Twitty was sitting on Louis's bed once again throwing the baseball up and down and catching it. "Hi, Tawny?" Ren said into the receiver.  
  
"Oh, hello, Ren," Tawny responded. "What's this really important thing you wanted to tell me?" she asked.  
  
"Well," Ren started. "Um, I'm sorry, but I'd rather tell you in person. It's really big; I promise it is. Do you think you could be here in a few minutes? It'll only take up a little of you're time. I just need to get everything out in the open with you and Twitty tonight." Tawny, for one of the few times in her life, was speechless.  
  
"Sure, I'll be right over Ren," she said. "Bye."  
  
"Bye," Ren said, hitting the off button on the phone. "She's coming over, Louis." Louis was a little stunned.  
  
"How did you persuade her to come over so quickly? She was about to go online," Louis stated.  
  
"Guess I just have talent?" Ren smirked. "Let's all go downstairs and wait, okay?" Louis and Twitty nodded, then followed Ren out of Louis's room and to the living room where they sat for only a couple minutes before Tawny knocked on the door. Louis got up and answered it and invited his girlfriend in.  
  
"Can we make this quick?" she asked. "My dad said he'd wait outside in the car for me."  
  
"I'm not so sure how fast I can tell you what I need to say, so you might want to ask your dad to drive around the block or something."  
  
"Oh, okay. Can I use your phone real quick?" she asked.  
  
"Sure, go ahead," Louis said. Tawny called her dad on his cell phone and told him she'd call him again to pick her up. When she was finished she hung up the phone and sat down on the couch next to Twitty and Louis. Ren stood up in front of them.  
  
"What I'm about to tell you, you must promise to keep confidential," she said. Her brother's friends were a little confused, but promised to keep whatever Ren was going to tell them, a secret. "Well, neither of you are going to believe this, but," she paused to think for a second. She sighed and then continued. "I'm pregnant," she finished. Tawny and Twitty were equally shocked. Their best friend's older sister was going to be a teen mother, however, that wasn't the part that shocked them the most. It was 'who' their best friend's sister was. And THAT was Ren Stevens, the most looked-up to girl in school. Tawny was the first to speak.  
  
"Wow, Ren. You weren't kidding... Is it Bobby's... are you going to, you know?" she asked.  
  
"Keep it?" Ren finished for her. "Yes, and it is Bobby's." Twitty didn't say anything. In fact, it still seemed to be sinking into his head. Louis spoke up.  
  
"Twitty, hey Twitty! Anybody home?" Twitty seemed to snap to at that point.  
  
"Now I understand why you didn't want to listen in on Ren," he sighed. "Whoa. Never saw that coming," he said.  
  
"None of us did, Twitty," Ren said. "Not even me." There was an awkward silence. Then Tawny spoke again.  
  
"We won't say anything at school, Ren. You can count on us," she said, putting a hand on Ren's shoulder.  
  
"Thanks," Ren said. She sat down in the armchair next to the couch and leaned back. She sighed heavily and rolled her eyes slightly. 'Thank goodness that's over with,' she thought. Tawny asked several other questions, most of which Ren was happy to answer. However, one question did kind of stump her.  
  
"Are your parents making you and Bobby get married?" Tawny asked. Ren squinted her eyes in thought when she heard this.  
  
"I honestly have no idea," she told her brother's girlfriend. "I mean, I don't think they would..." Ren bit her lip. "Would they?" she asked out loud, although mainly to herself. She was starting to get a little worried. Sure she wasn't ready to have a kid, but she knew she DEFINITELY wasn't ready to get married, especially to Bobby after his childish reaction only two nights ago. She couldn't trust him not to do that again. Ren thought for a minute. 'Well, they didn't kick me out of the house...' She'd have to ask her mom later that night. Ren's train of thought was derailed when she heard a car honk several times right outside the house and Tawny say,  
  
"That's my dad, must've been here longer than I thought. I gotta go. See you all at school tomorrow." Ren waved "goodbye" to Tawny as she was leaving and Tawny waved back. Louis and Twitty were sitting on the couch quietly talking between themselves. Ren sat back in the armchair and sighed, thinking. 'I hope Mom and Dad get home soon,' she thought. 'I need to know if they're planning a wedding for Bobby and me.' Just then a car pulled in the driveway and Ren could hear someone get out. 'That must be Mom,' she hoped. She glanced at the clock; it was already six-thirty. Then she went back to thinking. The door opened and Eileen came in. Twitty stood up from the couch.  
  
"That's my cue. See ya tomorrow Louis, Ren," he said. Ren didn't seem to acknowledge him, but Louis did.  
  
"Bye Twitty," Louis said. Eileen took off her coat and hung it up in the closet near the door. Twitty brushed past her and went out.  
  
"Hello, Alan," she smiled. "Bye, Alan?" she said, puzzled. "Hi, kids. He was sure in a hurry."  
  
"Hi, Ma," Louis said and then went upstairs. Ren was still sitting in the armchair, worrying about her future. Eileen saw this and lightly tapped her on the shoulder. Ren jumped.  
  
"Oh, hi, Mom. You startled me," she said. Eileen could see the distress on Ren's face.  
  
"What's bothering you, Honey?" Eileen asked squatting down next to Ren. "It's okay, whatever it is you can tell me."  
  
"Well, I told Tawny and Twitty about the "situation" and then Tawny asked me a question.... You're gonna laugh," Ren said. "I'm probably worrying myself over nothing."  
  
"I promise I won't laugh, Ren. You can tell me." Ren sighed and told her mom what she was troubled over.  
  
"Of course we're not going to make you and Bobby get married. Just because you're having a baby doesn't mean you need to get hitched. You just stop worrying about that. Everything will be all right, you'll see. We're there for you. And I'm sure Bobby and his parents will be too. Even if you don't get married," Eileen said. Ren hugged her mom. She was very relieved.  
  
"Thanks, Mom," she said, gratefully. "I feel a lot better now."  
  
"I'm glad to hear it," Eileen said. "Now go get your coat and tell Louis to get his too, we're meeting your dad for dinner." Ren did as she was told and as soon as everyone was ready, they all hopped in Eileen's car and met Steve for dinner at the pizza parlor.  
  
A/N 2: Wow, the longest chapter yet. I apologize once again for taking so long in updating. I honestly didn't have the time. Good news though, I've already started writing chapter 9 and that should be up within the next week (I hope). However, that chapter will be fairly short, not much going on with it, although you never know. Anyways, I hope all of you have enjoyed this chapter. Also, please keep checking on my writer profile for updates. Thank you, and in case you forgot, please be gems and review. Tootles! 


	9. That's the Beat of the Heart

Disclaimer: I do not own Even Stevens. The Walt Disney Co. does. Only the idea for this story belongs to me.  
  
I'd like to say a great, big THANKS to everybody who reviewed my story thus far and welcome to the newbies. (You like me, you really like me **tear**).  
  
Note to the authoress' father: Daddy, thank you for not embarrassing me with your review, it means a lot to me. (Tear).  
  
A/N: Woo Hoo, less than 45 days left of school, and then I'll finally be free from the evil grasp of...ahem, what was I saying? Oh yeah, I'll be graduating in only a couple short months, June 7th to be exact. I apologize once again for taking an eternity to update. I've been extremely busy with the holiday coming up. There shouldn't be much homework during the fourth quarter though, so I will be able to update more often. Great news, Eh? I'm thrilled. Anywho, here is chapter 9 of Ren's Perfect Mistake and things are starting to speed up (just a little). I hope you all like it. Don't forget to be the gems I know you are, and review. Happy Passover and/or Easter!  
  
Ren's Perfect Mistake  
Chapter 9: That's the Beat of the Heart  
  
Several weeks had passed since Ren's morning meeting with Principal Wexler in which she was able to notify all of her teachers of her "situation." Most of their reactions were very similar: shock. They couldn't believe that a straight-A student would get pregnant at seventeen, especially a straight-A student like Ren Stevens; they kept it hush-hush nonetheless. And, since then, Ren's morning sickness was finally starting to dwindle off. However, there were still some days in which it had its vengeance. Nevertheless, Ren held her head high and continued going to class as normal, only occasionally running to the girls' room to take care of "business." She had also noticed she had started to gain weight, although, it was almost unnoticeable to everyone else, for now anyways.  
  
After waking up and going through what had, by now, become the "normal" routine, Ren took a shower and got dressed in an outfit from her new "expandable" wardrobe. Even though she was barely showing, Eileen had told her that if she wanted the clothing to fit her when she really got big, then she should start wearing it now. Ren couldn't argue with her mother's advice.  
  
On this particular day Ren was in a good mood; she wasn't sure if it was because Louis had spent the night at Twitty's, the hormones, or just an all around good day, but she felt good. Not only that, she was a little excited as well as anxious because this was the day she was getting her first ultrasound done. She had had to wait an extra two and a half weeks after Dr. Roscoe had to cancel on October twentieth due to a death in her family. Ren couldn't reschedule it for the next day like she had hoped because it was a Sunday, and Monday was already booked, so she settled for Saturday, November eighth instead.  
  
Ren didn't know what to expect at the doctor's office. What she did know was that she didn't want to know the sex of the baby. All she needed to know was that the baby was healthy and her due date, which she had totally forgotten to ask on her last visit and Dr. Roscoe had been so distracted by Ren's age that it had probably never crossed her mind either.  
  
Ren had a new philosophy too. "It started out as a surprise and I intend to finish it as a surprise." Everyone seemed to agree with this new philosophy except for Ruby and Bobby. Ruby wanted to know so she could plan a baby shower and Bobby already knew it was a boy.  
  
When Ren finished dressing and doing her hair and such, she went downstairs to eat breakfast in the kitchen. She was surprised to see Donny was home for the day and that he had brought a friend with him. A FEMALE friend!  
  
"Good morning, Donny," Ren said eyeing the girl that Donny had brought with him. "When did you get here?"  
  
"Oh, morning, Ren," he replied. "We just got here a few minutes ago."  
  
"Okay," Ren said. "Cause I was in the shower and didn't hear you come in," she said, then quickly changed the subject. "What brings you back home so soon? Thanksgiving isn't for another three weeks."  
  
"I just wanted to ask Mom and Dad a few questions. Where are they anyway?" Donny asked.  
  
"Where's who?" Ren said, she'd been staring at the strange girl sitting at the kitchen table and had been caught off-guard by her brother's question.  
  
"Mom and Dad!" Donny repeated.  
  
"Oh! They had to go somewhere early this morning. I think it was some kind of breakfast for senators or something like that." Donny had a puzzled look on his face. "You do know that Mom's a senator, right?"  
  
"Oh yeah. She helps people get things fixed! So why does she have to go to the breakfast thingy?" Ren slapped a hand over her face. There was no getting through to him. He was making her angry, so she changed the subject.  
  
"How are you Donny?" she asked through gritting teeth. "Last time I saw you was right before Halloween."  
  
"I'm good, Ren. Thank you for asking. And how are you this morning?" he asked, emphasizing the word "morning." Ren raised an eyebrow.  
  
"I'm fine this morning," she replied dryly, catching his drift. "Are you going to introduce me to your new friend?" she asked.  
  
"Oh. I'm sorry. Ren, this is my girlfriend Wendi. With an "I"," he added. "And Wendi, this is my little sister Ren." Wendi held out her right hand.  
  
"Pleasure meetin' ya," she said, smiling broadly. Her accent was that, not of a Californian. Ren took her hand and they shook on it.  
  
"It's a pleasure meeting you too, Wendi." Ren said smiling back. She really wasn't in the mood for company. "So, how did you and Donny meet?" Ren inquired.  
  
"Oh, ya know, the usual places where guys meet gals," Wendi giggled. She was pulling at one of her braided, blond, pigtails. Donny gave Ren a more direct answer.  
  
"We met at a football game," he said in a goofy, dreamy sort of voice. Ren rolled her eyes. "She's a cheerleader. And she's from Texas. Isn't that wonderful?" he sighed, stealing a short kiss from Wendi. Wendi giggled again. Ren cringed a little bit, not about the smooch, but the way Wendi laughed. She had one of those sharp, piercing giggles that was as musical as nails on a chalkboard. Ren hoped that Donny wasn't getting serious with her, but she was judging her too soon. She'd have to ask more questions.  
  
"So, what are you studying to be, Wendi?" Ren asked, curious to know what Wendi's major was.  
  
"Ready, get this. I'm studyin' ta be...oh this is so great," she giggled again. "I'm studyin' ta be...AN ARCHEOLOGIST!" she shouted. "It's been mah dream since I was little ta play in the dirt fer a livin'. I jist love learnin' 'bout the past. An' the best part is, this summuh; I git ta go ta Egypt to study them pyramids." Wendi continued to talk and talk and talk. Ren watched the clock impatiently. The ticking was driving her more nuts than Wendi's talking. Apparently the girl knew what she was talking about because she just kept going and going about how mummies were made. Ren heard her mutter something about pulling the brains of the corpse out through the nose with a hot iron stick, but didn't hear much after that. She really wasn't interested. And even if she'd wanted to, she couldn't have gotten a word in edgewise.  
  
Ren finally snapped out of her haze when she heard Wendi proclaim, "Ain't that fascinatin'?"  
  
"Huh, oh. Yeah. It's very fascinating. I never knew that mummies were prepared that way," Ren mumbled. She heard and felt her stomach growl and put a hand on it, then looked at the clock again. She'd been up since just after nine and hadn't had anything to eat yet. It was already ten thirty- five. Ren's stomach growled again, only louder. Neither Donny nor Wendi seemed to notice.  
  
Ren cleared her throat. "Huh hmm. Hey, have you two eaten yet?" she asked. Donny answered.  
  
"Yeah, we stopped at an IHOP on the way here."  
  
"You don't mind if I eat then, do you, cause I'm a little hungry, if you know what I mean?" she sneered at her brother causing him to wince. She never meant it to sound so angry though.  
  
"Are you feeling all right, Ren?" he asked.  
  
"I'm just HUNGRY. That's all. I've been up for an hour and a half and I haven't been able to eat." Wendi squinted her eyes in thought. Then, trying to be helpful made a suggestion.  
  
"Ya know, Hon, I found that eating a small piece of chocolate early in the morning calms the nerves and sends those negative hormones back where they all belong."  
  
"Thanks for the advice, Wendi. But I'm not much of a chocolate eater and I can't eat sweets too early in the day," Ren told her. She wasn't about to tell another person she was pregnant. She had already had to tell her grandparents earlier in the week after her parents had told her it was time she told them. They weren't too happy about it, but they supported Ren's decision of keeping the baby. And Wendi, well, Wendi didn't have to know. Who knows how long she would date Donny anyhow.  
  
Ren got up from her seat at the kitchen table and searched through the cupboards for her favorite cereal, only to find that there wasn't any milk left, so she had a cup of fruit and a small bowl of cottage cheese instead. As soon as she sat back down, Wendi started talking again.  
  
"Ya know, this one time, when I was 'bout ten years old, mah grand pappy took me on a dig with 'im, I think it was in Peru; he was an archeologist, that's how I became in'erested in it, an' we found this big ole burial ground with Incan things in it." Ren nodded and continued eating. Wendi continued speaking. "There was lots of things in it, like clay pots an' arrowheads an' all sorts of other things. I was even lucky 'nough ta find a lil' dolly sized mummy. I was right scared at first, but it turned out ta be the greatest treasure there. Even though Grand Pappy found gold jewelry..." Wendi stopped all of a sudden.  
  
Ren was relieved to hear that Wendi had stopped talking, but she didn't know how long the silence was going to last. So, she excused herself and got up to wash the dishes from her light breakfast. During that time Wendi stayed surprisingly quiet. It was as if she'd run out of things to talk about.  
  
"So, when are Mom and Dad going to get back?" Donny asked after a couple minutes. He seemed awfully impatient today. Ren shrugged.  
  
"I'm not sure. They woke me up when they were leaving... and that was about seven-thirty. I went back to sleep for another hour and a half. They said that they were probably going to be coming home late so you two might as well go out and do something together. Besides it's a nice day today. And I have things I have to do too..." Ren's thoughts drifted as she looked at the time on the kitchen clock. "Oh God! It's already eleven. I have to call Bobby. I, or rather we, have an appointment at noon."  
  
"Y'all gettin' your pictures taken?" Wendi asked. Ren had once again been caught off guard. She started stuttering then answered as truthfully as she could without telling Wendi what was really going on.  
  
"Yeah, somethin' like that," Ren told her. She wasn't lying. Technically an ultrasound was like taking pictures. Ren smiled. "Now if you'll excuse me..." she said going back upstairs to call Bobby.  
  
Ren came back downstairs a few minutes later with her purse and jacket. "Bobby will be here in a few minutes to pick me up. Don't forget to lock the door if you go anywhere...Donny?"  
  
"Oh. Sorry, Ren. Don't worry. I won't forget. I have Wendi here to remind me," he said, pulling the girl in for a hug. Moments later the doorbell rang.  
  
"That must be Bobby," Ren said. "I guess I'll see you later. It was nice meeting you, Wendi," she added in a hurry. She opened the front door, but instead of Bobby standing there, it was...  
  
"Beans! What are you doing here?" Ren asked in alarm.  
  
"Is Louis home?" the kid asked.  
  
"Um, no he's not. He spent the night at Twitty's. Why?" Ren replied. Beans quickly changed the subject.  
  
"That's okay. Do you have any bacon?"  
  
"Beans! You asked the same question yesterday. And the answer is still no." The annoying child pouted a little. Ren looked over her shoulder towards the kitchen, smiled then bent over to whisper in the kid's ear. "You know, Donny's in the kitchen with his new girlfriend. Maybe..." she was interrupted by a car honking. She looked up. It was Bobby. Ren gave him a "one moment" sign and finished telling Beans what she had begun telling him. "Maybe if you go inside and ask real nicely they'll go and take you for ice cream. I hear they have a new flavor at Loopy Scoopy." Beans' eyes lit up.  
  
"Really? What flavor?" he asked excitedly.  
  
"I think it's called Chocolate Chirp Cookie Dough."  
  
"Mmmm. That sounds good. I love crickets. They're so crunchy! I wonder if it'll be as good as their Dill Pickle Sherbet."  
  
Ren cringed, but somehow it didn't really surprise her. That was just Beans. "Well, I have to go kiddo," she told Beans patting him on the back. He went inside the house, stopped and waved goodbye to her as she got into Bobby's car. As soon as they started pulling out of the driveway Beans shut the door, laughing maniacally.  
  
***********************************************************************  
  
Bobby and Ren got to the hospital quick enough; there was hardly any traffic. They still had ten minutes to spare before their appointment. So, after signing in at the front desk they sat down in the waiting room. There weren't too many people there either. Which, according to another woman, whom they had over heard, was "unusual." She was a young woman; probably late her pregnancy, as far as they could tell, and she had a couple other young children with her. She seemed very much at ease being there.  
  
Ren was fairly nervous herself. This was the first time she'd gone to the doctor's without her mother. Sure, Bobby was there, but that was just Bobby. He didn't really understand what was going on with her. The receptionist called a few names and the waiting room was empty except for her and Bobby and another couple who had just walked in moments before.  
  
Bobby, on the other hand, seemed a little agitated. He kept glancing at the clock as Ren had done on her first visit to Dr. Roscoe's office. He grabbed hold of Ren's hand and squeezed. He had one leg crossed over another and he was bouncing it, shaking the small couch that he and Ren were sharing. Ren put her free hand on his leg to stop him from shaking.  
  
"Sorry," he mumbled. Ren squeezed his hand back.  
  
"It's okay. I'm a little anxious too," she told him. They sat in silence, holding hands until Ren's name was called a few minutes later. "That's us," she said. Bobby seemed to have been daydreaming.  
  
"Huh?" he asked, confused.  
  
"Are you coming?" Ren said.  
  
"Yeah, sorry," he apologized before standing up with Ren and following her and the receptionist to a back room where they waited only a matter of seconds for Dr. Roscoe to come in.  
  
"Good more... Oops I mean good afternoon, Miss Stevens," Dr. Roscoe greeted the teen.  
  
"Good afternoon to you too, Dr. Roscoe," Ren replied. "I'm so sorry for the loss of your father," she added, not knowing what else to say. Dr. Roscoe looked at Ren whole-heartedly.  
  
"Thank you, Miss Stevens," Dr. Roscoe said, meaning it. "My father was a great man. He's who got me into medicine in the first place." She paused. "Could you believe that I originally wanted to be an animal trainer," she chuckled. Ren smiled too. "And is this the father?" she asked.  
  
"Yes," Ren replied. "Dr. Roscoe, this is Bobby Deaver; Bobby, this is Dr. Roscoe." They shook hands.  
  
"Nice to meet you, Mr. Deaver," Dr. Roscoe said.  
  
"Same here," Bobby replied.  
  
"So, Miss Stevens, I heard that your mother got re-elected for her Senate position." Ren's face lit up.  
  
"Yeah, it was a close one this year. We're all so glad she was able to make it again. She wished she could be here, but she had a senatorial breakfast to attend."  
  
"Well, tell her I send my congratulations and good luck. Let's see," she began, looking at her clipboard, "it says here that your appointment today is for an ultrasound?"  
  
"Yes," Ren sighed.  
  
"Okay then. Do either of you have any questions before we begin?" Dr. Roscoe asked.  
  
"Yes. I actually do have one question," Ren said.  
  
"Go on," Dr. Roscoe urged.  
  
"Well, here goes. Can you tell me about when the baby's due? It seemed to have slipped my mind the last time we met."  
  
"You mean I didn't calculate your due date last time? Gee, how forgetful of me. That's gotta be the fifth or sixth time I've done that to someone. I'm so sorry."  
  
"Oh, you don't have to apologize. I forgot to ask, too," Ren said. Bobby had sat down on a chair next to a small bed and a thing that looked like a computer. He hadn't said anything for quite some time.  
  
"Okay," Dr. Roscoe said. "That's easy enough to figure out. I just need to know the date of the first day of your last period and how long your cycle is."  
  
"No problem," Ren said, pulling out a pocketbook calendar from her purse. At this Bobby had to comment.  
  
"You keep a calendar in your purse. What else do you keep in there, Mary?" he said sarcastically. Ren made a playful fist at him and he was quiet once more.  
  
"Okay, the first day of my last period was...August tenth," Ren said. "And my cycle usually lasts about thirty days."  
  
"Thank you, may I see you pocketbook for a couple seconds?" Dr. Roscoe asked.  
  
"Sure," Ren replied.  
  
"Watch this, this is really cool. This is also how people determined date of conception and birth in the old days, before computers. You said August tenth and thirty days?"  
  
"Yes," Ren said, looking over the doctor's shoulder, watching her as she counted days in Ren's pocketbook.  
  
"You don't mind if I write in here, do you?" she asked.  
  
"Um. No. Go ahead," Ren replied. Dr. Roscoe x-ed off the day August tenth then counted to thirty days to September eighth and marked that with her red pen too. Then she counted backward fourteen days, as far as Ren could tell, and marked the day August twenty-fifth.  
  
"That is the approximate date of conception," she said. Ren nodded. That was three days after Bobby's party. "Are you still with me? Good." Dr. Roscoe started flipping through the calendar again and writing in a number in one block of each month. She finally stopped on the "May" pages of the calendar. "Okay," she continued. "I just counted out forty weeks in here," she said holding up the calendar, "and I've marked one day every four weeks with the week number of the pregnancy. And in doing so I estimate that your little bundle of joy is due about May the twenty- fourth."  
  
"Thank you. Wow!" Ren said. "You were right, that was pretty cool. How did you do it?"  
  
"It was just simple counting, Miss Stevens. Now, are there any other questions before we do the ultrasound?"  
  
"No, at least not right now," Ren said.  
  
"Okay. Let's get to it then. Ren, I want you to hop up here and roll your shirt up and your pants down as far as you can without stripping," she laughed. "And Mr. Deaver, I'm gonna have to ask you to move." Both teens did as they were told. Dr. Roscoe turned on the ultrasound machine and while it was warming up felt Ren's abdomen. Bobby moved to the other side of the bed and held Ren's hand.  
  
She asked Ren some questions, which she was glad to answer. "By the way, according to your calendar, you are almost twelve weeks along," Dr. Roscoe added. Ren's eyes widened.  
  
"My first trimester is almost over?" she asked.  
  
"Yep. And I see somebody's been doing their homework." Dr. Roscoe smiled. Ren blushed; she was still an over-achiever even though she was pregnant.  
  
"Yeah, I read all those pamphlets you gave me. And I passed them along to Bobby," Ren added, nudging him with her elbow.  
  
"What? I read them!" he said. Dr. Roscoe laughed then asked the teens a few more questions before prepping Ren's stomach with a clear, gel- like substance.  
  
"Geez that's cold!" Ren shrieked. Bobby laughed. Ren elbowed him again. Dr. Roscoe apologized and continued the exam. She pointed out the spine and limbs and any other body parts that were visible. Then she asked if they'd like to hear the baby's heart, which of course they did, so she turned the volume up and a soft, quick "thump, thump, thump, thump" filled the room.  
  
"Hear that, Bobby? That the beat of the heart!" Ren exclaimed. "That's our baby's heart!" She was truly in awe. Then Dr. Roscoe began speaking.  
  
"Well, your baby is very healthy. Everything is in good shape."  
  
"Thank you, Dr. Roscoe," Ren said. "That's all I needed to know."  
  
"Before you two leave, would you like to know the sex of your baby?"  
  
"Yes/NO!" Bobby and Ren exclaimed at the same time. Dr. Roscoe laughed. She didn't know how many times she'd seen this happen. One parent-to-be would want to know and the other doesn't. However, of all of the teen mothers-to-be, Ren was the first to not want to know.  
  
"Are you sure you don't want to know, Miss Stevens?" she asked.  
  
"Yes," she replied. "I have this new philosophy too, 'it started out as a surprise so it's going to end as a surprise'." Bobby playfully sneered at Ren. He didn't really like Ren's new philosophy. Dr. Roscoe laughed again.  
  
"Well, sorry Mr. Deaver, but I'm afraid I'm gonna have to side with Miss Stevens on this one. She is, after all, the one carrying the baby. I can't really tell for certain at this point in the pregnancy anyway, it's too soon, but, Ren, if you change your mind, just set up an appointment. That's all for today," Dr. Roscoe said turning off the machine and handing Ren a paper towel. Ren wiped the ooze off of her stomach, fixed her clothes, and got down from the bed. "You two can go wait out in the other room, but don't leave until your ultrasound pictures are printed. Oh, and I almost forgot, here are a few more pamphlets on some classes we offer for first-timers. I strongly recommend them."  
  
"Thank you, so much, Dr. Roscoe," Ren said, taking the pamphlets.  
  
"Yes, thank you," Bobby added. The two teens walked out into the waiting room and sat down after making another appointment for the following month between Christmas and New Year's. Dr. Roscoe's secretary, Maria, came out a few minutes later with the ultrasound pictures. After that, Bobby and Ren left the hospital and got lunch at a popular diner before going home.  
  
A/N 2: I am so sorry for taking this long to update again, but I've been so busy with everything. I have to read Crime and Punishment for English, I have to write an essay on the Sound and the Fury, and I have to work a lot. BLAH, BLAH, BLAH... Okay, I know you guys really don't want to hear my whining about homework. I've already got some ideas for the rest of the story though. By the way I made a few references from other places, movies, etc. Those were IHOP (International House of Pancakes, for those of you who don't know) and when Bobby calls Ren "Mary" (Mary Poppins). I do not own either of these things, although I do own the movie 'Mary Poppins' on VHS. Finally, "Loopy Scoopy" is just a place I made up. I own it. I also made up Wendi, with an "I." She is my own character, I own her too.  
  
A/N 3: I left what Beans did to Donny and Wendi up to your own imaginations. I also did the math to figure out Ren's due date with the help of Babyzone.com and a medical book. I don't own those either. Thanks! Keep smiling everybody. Tootles. 


	10. Thanks For Nothing

Disclaimer: I do not own Even Stevens. The Walt Disney Co. does. Only the idea for this story belongs to me.  
  
I would just like to send out another THANKS to everyone who reviewed my story. Welcome any more newbies.  
  
Note to shooting-starrz-4- Sorry, but I think you just lost 100 dollars. I did not just finish watching Where the Heart Is, although I do know the movie well. It's one of my faves.  
  
Note to idk- Thank you for the Beta reader offer, but I am confident in my writing skills. I know there are some errors; I usually don't catch them until after I've posted though. Besides, this is just a fun project to get my mind off homework. (Especially essays- blah! lX P )  
  
Note to artsigurl16- WHERE ARE YOU?!  
  
A/N: I know, I know; it's been over a month. Bad Widow Shark (slaps herself in the face)! Sorry about taking so long again, I never meant for it to go this far without updating. The usual excuses are to blame: work, homework, reading, writer's block, yadda yadda yadda. Get my drift? Anywho don't forget to sparkle and shine like the gems you all are and review. Thanks and tootles.  
  
Ren's Perfect Mistake  
Chapter 10: Thanks For Nothing  
  
Thanksgiving had sneaked up on the Stevens family in what seemed only to be a couple of days ago and not almost three weeks. It was only nine in the morning and Mrs. Stevens was already in the kitchen making her own family's Thanksgiving dinner after having been away for a week of helping the needy in the greater Sacramento area. Mr. Stevens was fast at work in his study writing a brief for a large, new case. Louis would be sleeping like a baby until almost noon. And Ren, as always, was up early and in the kitchen helping her mom prepare a magnificent Thanksgiving feast, despite her current situation.  
  
Things were especially exciting this year because Donny would be getting home from school soon with Wendi, now his fiancée, and her parents.  
  
Over those three weeks Ren had learned that the reason for Donny's early return from school was primarily to introduce Wendi to their parents and ask about proposing. They had stayed that entire weekend and Ren got to know Wendi better and vice versa. It turns out they had a lot more in common than she would have ever guessed.  
  
The following week, Donny proposed to her, at a football game nonetheless, with the use of one of the giant video scoreboards. And whether Ren wanted to believe it or not, Donny and Wendi were madly in love with each other. Now they were engaged and the parents were meeting over Thanksgiving dinner.  
  
This year Ren and her mother where discussing pregnancy and parenthood during food preparation. She asked her mother several questions. Among them were mostly general questions, but one was rather difficult for Eileen to answer completely, simple as it was:  
  
"How did you become such a good mom?" Ren asked.  
  
Eileen was a bit stumped over this one. She stopped what she was doing and put her hand to her chin, thoughtfully, and sighed. "Well, hmm...let me think," Eileen said, still pondering her daughter's question.  
  
"Can you think of a metaphor?" Ren asked, trying to be helpful.  
  
"Thanks for the suggestion, Honey," she said continuing to think. "Okay, I've got it!" She paused for a few seconds before continuing. "Well, to begin with Ren, I'm glad you asked that question, but I'm sorry to tell you there's no definite answer as to how I became a good mom. I just sort of evolved into one, you could say. However, I was able to think of a metaphor like you suggested." Eileen paused to put the turkey she'd been stuffing and basting in the oven. When that was finished, she continued answering Ren's question. "You see, Ren, parenting is much like learning how to ride a bike..."  
  
Ren interjected, "Mom," she said, "I'm not sure that's such a good metaphor. If you remember correctly, I still can't ride a bike without training wheels and I don't think I ever will..."  
  
"Nonsense, Ren, you'll learn how to ride a two-wheeler eventually. Give it time. Just listen to my metaphor first." Ren sighed.  
  
"Okay," she said reluctantly.  
  
"What I was trying to say was, you don't become good overnight..."  
  
Ren mumbled something that sounded like "unless you're Donny" under her breath, still listening to her mother's pep talk.  
  
"...It takes a lot of patience and a lot of time and energy to be a good parent, just like learning to ride a bike. The main difference between being a parent and learning to ride a bike, though, is you don't get too many chances to practice. Even if you baby-sit all of the time; it's very different when it's your own child and that's the most important thing to remember." Ren nodded again.  
  
"I will, Mom. Thanks for answering my..." the doorbell rang and she stopped talking in mid-sentence.  
  
"That must be Donny, Wendi, and her parents," Eileen said looking at the clock. "Oh My! It's late. Ren, could you do me a huge favor, Honey, and go wake Louis up. He's overslept. Again," she finished, running to answer the door, but Steve had beaten her to it.  
  
"No problem, Mom," Ren sighed, then hurried up the stairs as fast as her swollen body would allow. She could hear voices from the top of the steps; it was in fact Donny and his fiancée and her parents. She stood there for a few moments listening before returning to her mission.  
  
"Come on in, don't be shy," she heard her father, Steve, telling their guests. "You can just set your suitcases right there on the floor, I'll get them later. My name's Steve Stevens." Wendi's parents, the Glass's, came in and greeted Mr. Stevens.  
  
"Thank you, so much, Steve," Mr. Glass said wearily. They had just flown in and would be staying in one of the guest bedrooms for the weekend. Donny and Wendi would occupy the other guest bedroom, which just happened to be Donny's old bedroom.  
  
Mrs. Stevens, who had still been in the kitchen when Ren went upstairs, walked up and casually introduced herself to the guests.  
  
"Hello, Happy Thanksgiving! I'm Eileen, and I see you've already met my husband, Steve. Please, come into the living room and make yourselves at home." She said leading Mr. and Mrs. Glass to the living room. Ren couldn't hear much after that so she forced herself up the rest of the stairs to rouse "Sleeping Ugly" with a few pounds on the door.  
  
Meanwhile, in the Stevens' family living room there were still more introductions to be made and much more chattering to come.  
  
"It's a real pleasure meetin' ya!" Mrs. Glass said heartily. "By the way, I'm Sandee, with a double-e an' this is mah husband, Booker. Mah Wendi can't say 'nough 'bout you folks," Mrs. Glass laughed. Eileen laughed too.  
  
"Can I get you anything, Sandee, Booker?" Mrs. Stevens asked.  
  
"Heck no, Mrs. Stevens. We're just fine for the time bein.' Thanks fer the offer though," Booker replied.  
  
"Okay then," Mrs. Stevens said smiling. "Just let me know if you need anything. Won't all of you have a seat?" Everyone found a comfortable spot to sit. Mr. and Mrs. Glass were sitting side by side on the couch. Donny and Wendi were on the floor leaning against the coffee table and each other. And Mr. and Mrs. Stevens were sitting in armchairs that were askew from each other. They talked quietly amongst themselves while they waited for Ren and Louis to come down.  
  
Ren knocked on Louis' door three times; she pounded really, but there was no sign of life coming from inside. She hated the thought of venturing into her brother's room; it was a wreck. She waited thirty more seconds before she tried again. The same results came back. "Louis, wake up!" she shouted through the door. "It's after eleven." It was no use; there was no answer. "Fine. Have it your way!" she shouted. Then she thought of something that would make it worth her wild to go into his pigsty. She smirked deviously. 'Now THAT just might work,' she thought.  
  
It was the best plan she'd come up with in a while. It was almost as good as when she'd helped Louis clean up the "Stevens' Manor" mess. Her smile faded when she thought about the trouble they'd been in. Louis had been grounded for over a month and she'd gotten two weeks for helping him cover it up. That had been over two years ago though. That was then; this is now. He wasn't going to wake up any other way and, Heaven forbid, he should wake up on his own. She had to do this. And surely her parents would understand... She placed a hand on her stomach, "Right?" she asked it, though mostly to herself.  
  
Ren shrugged then went into her bedroom to get her Polaroid camera and then to the bathroom and filled a large paper cup almost to the top with ice- cold water. 'If this doesn't wake him up, I don't know what will,' she thought. She carefully walked back out into the hallway and after thinking for a couple seconds decided to give Louis one more chance to wake up before she went in. Ren could still hear the adults' lively conversation and bantering coming from the living room although she had no idea what they were saying. She pounded on the door again. "Louis! Come on; wake up. It's almost eleven-thirty and the Glass's are already hear. Louis? Fine. I'm coming in now." Then she mumbled under her breath, "and don't say I didn't warn you." She was about to put her hand on the doorknob when her mother yelled up the stairs, startling her and almost causing her to lose her grasp of the cup.  
  
"Ren! What's taking you so long? Is Louis up yet?"  
  
"No, Mom," Ren called down. "He must not have heard me. I'm going in to wake him up now."  
  
"Okay, just be quick about it. We're all waiting for you," Eileen said before heading back into the living room with Steve, Donny, and the Glass family. Ren sighed heavily.  
  
"That was a close one. Here goes nothing..." Ren opened Louis' bedroom door slowly so as not to make any noise. Then, on her tiptoes, she stepped over several articles of worn clothing and junk on the floor. She almost tripped several times. And that was only two feet away from the door. She tiptoed a few more feet closer to Louis' bed. Ren could see him sprawled out. He was snoring loudly. One of his hands was resting on his alarm clock. Her camera fell out of her hand once and she squinted, hoping it hadn't awakened her brother. He hadn't stirred. "Phew, I thought I blew it," Ren whispered to herself. When she finally reached the optimal picture-taking position, Ren readied herself: camera in one hand, cup of ice water in the other. "On the count of three I'll do it. Okay. One. Two. Three." She threw the water at him, it worked, he sat up quickly, and she snapped the picture. He seemed to be in a sort of haze for a moment, but came to fast.  
  
"Wha...wha...what are you doing in here?" Louis stammered. He wiped the water that was dripping from his face off with his blanket.  
  
"Mom sent me to wake you up," Ren told him, arms akimbo.  
  
"It's only eight-thirty in the morning, Ren. My alarm only went off a few minutes ago. I just hit the sleep button, it would have rang again in a minute." Ren shook her head back and forth and sighed.  
  
"It's after eleven-thirty, Lou. Look at your clock."  
  
"It is not...it is after eleven-thirty!" He looked at Ren, his eyes bulging.  
  
"Yeah. And Wendi and her parents are here. They're waiting for us to come down. Now, come on. Get up out of your bed and get dressed." He stared at her in disbelief for a moment.  
  
"I will. Wow, I even set my alarm..." he muttered. "I'll be down in a few minutes. You can go," he sighed.  
  
"Alright. Just hurry up. Mom wants to have dinner on the table by noon," she told her brother, carefully making her way to the door. Before she left his room she added, "and by the way, Lou," she said holding up the picture, "this will make great black-male one day!" He started to run towards her, but he tripped and she disappeared around the corner. He could still hear her laughter though.  
  
"Gee, thanks," Louis mumbled, picking himself up off the floor. Then he finally got dressed in a nice pair of khakis and an orange, collared shirt. He thought about putting his turkey tie on, but thought better of it when he remembered the guests. It was nearly noon by the time he finished getting ready. "Mom and Dad are going to be furious with me. Ah! What else is new?" he said.  
  
Ren had gone back to her bedroom. She had to calm down before returning downstairs to meet the Glass's. She picked up the picture and burst out laughing again then immediately put it face down under her pillow. Taking deep breaths, Ren was finally able to calm herself down to a point where she wouldn't be guffawing any more. However, a smirk still remained on her face, so she remained in her room until she heard Louis' door open.  
  
Louis stepped out of his room and into the bathroom to finish getting ready. Ren stepped into the hallway a couple seconds later. "I swear I heard his door open," she mumbled and started downstairs with one hand on the railing and the other resting on her stomach. Louis was out of the bathroom before she made it to the bottom step. The adults had gone into the dining room and were getting ready to sit down and eat.  
  
"Hey, Sis!" Louis said to Ren. Then he lightly placed his hand on her growing stomach and said, "hey little niece or nephew!" Ren rolled her eyes at Louis' new 'thing'. That had been the fourth or fifth or tenth time this week he'd done that to her and it was getting annoying. She sighed and let it go.  
  
Louis and Ren walked into the dining room together. Eileen was the first to see them.  
  
"It's so nice of you two to finally join us, Kids!" she smiled. Louis and Ren could both hear the twang of agitation in her voice for keeping the guests waiting. She panned her attention back to the Glass's. "Sandee, Booker; I'd like you to meet my daughter, Ren, and my other son, Louis." Ren and Louis smiled and waved. "Ren, Lou," Mrs. Stevens continued with the introductions, "these are Wendi's parents, Mr. and Mrs. Glass."  
  
"It's very nice to meet you both," Ren said, smiling. She elbowed Louis, who was standing right next to her, lightly in the ribs.  
  
"Ow! What'd ya do that for?" Louis whispered to Ren. She just smiled and rolled her eyes in the direction of Mr. and Mrs. Glass, who were both looking directly at him. Louis caught her drift. "Oh! Yeah, it's um... very nice to meet you, too," he stammered.  
  
"Aw, shucks. Pleasure's all ours," Booker said, his accent surprising both Ren and Louis. Then he said, "why don't we all sit down and start eating? This dinner looks absolutely deeeee-licious!"  
  
"Why, thank you so much!" Mrs. Stevens exclaimed.  
  
Mr. Stevens thought that was a great idea and called everyone to the dinner table to sit down, but before everyone began eating, he asked that everyone tell what he or she was thankful for. He started: "I'm thankful for all the good times I've shared with my beautiful family and that I have a job at a great new firm."  
  
Mrs. Stevens went next: "I'm thankful for my wonderful husband and children and for the people of this district for electing me as their senator again. Why don't you go now, Louis?"  
  
"Oh, okay, sure. Uh, lemme think. Okay, got it. I'm thankful for my family and friends, my girlfriend, Tawny. I'm thankful for my drum set, my skis, and for all the times I've gotten away with something or another. And...and I'm thankful for," he began again, but his dad cut him off.  
  
"I think that's enough, Lou. Ren, why don't you go next?" he asked.  
  
"All right. I am also thankful for my family and friends. I don't know what I'd do without them, especially now," she said winking at her parents. "I'm thankful that Bobby and I made up and that the baby is health..." Ren quickly covered her mouth with both hands. She had a nauseous feeling in the pit of her stomach. What had she said? She hadn't planned on telling Wendi or her parents that she was pregnant, at least not yet. She was barely showing.  
  
Nobody said anything for half a minute and there were a lot of raised eyebrows, but nobody was staring at Ren. Wendi was the first to break the silence. "Ren, ya don't hafta ta hide. We ain't gonna bite ya and you've got nothin' ta be ashamed of either. Besides, I figured it out three weeks ago when I spent the weekend here." Ren put her hands down and looked at Wendi, the feeling in her stomach settling a bit.  
  
"How did you figure it out? I was so careful..." Ren said.  
  
"That's exactly how I figured you out; you was too careful. Besides, I saw the ultrasound picture laying on a table." Wendi smiled warmly. Ren had only known Wendi for a matter of weeks and she already felt like a sister to her. "You're so lucky, Ren, to have a supportive family. I wish my friend had had a family like yours when she got "in trouble." Ren wanted to know what happened to Wendi's friend right then, but she didn't think it was such an appropriate topic to talk about during Thanksgiving dinner, so she decided to wait until later. Wendi's parents didn't say a word and Ren couldn't tell whether their reaction was just shocked, piteous, disgusted, or some combination of the three.  
  
Suddenly Mrs. Glass spoke up. "Well, it doesn't matter how old ya are when ya have a baby, so long as it's loved an' cared for. So, why don't we continue sayin' what we're thankful for, hmm?" Everyone nodded, Donny was next, followed by Wendi, who in turn was supposed to be followed by her parents, but they were interrupted...  
  
"I'm thankful for BACON!" a voice said, coming from the back corner of the room. Steve rolled his eyes; it was no use changing the locks anymore, it was a waste of money. Eileen sighed, an expected unexpected guest. Ren and Louis did nothing; they were used to having the annoying kid around. Donny and Wendi, however, ducked under the table out of fear; Ren had a feeling it had something to do with the day she had the ultrasound done. Mr. and Mrs. Glass only looked at the chubby boy that stood in front of them. "Who are you?" the kid asked them.  
  
Booker answered, "we're the Glass's and we were just 'bout ta ask you the same question."  
  
"I'm Beans!" the kid answered ecstatically. He then turned to Mrs. Stevens, "Do you have any bacon?"  
  
"Bernard, Beans, Sweetie," Mrs. Stevens said taking the kid by both his hands, "why aren't you at home, eating Thanksgiving dinner with your family?" Eileen asked. The kid thought for a few moments before answering her question.  
  
"My weird Aunt Sal is over. She smells like dead bugs and she likes to pinch my cheeks," he told Mrs. Stevens.  
  
Eileen nodded her head. "Well, you can stay and have turkey with us if you'd like, but I'm calling your parents to let them know where you are."  
  
"Oh, I already told them I was coming over here. It's cool with them." Mrs. Stevens gave Beans a funny look, nodded, and then went into the kitchen to get another place setting for the intrusive, yet oddly adorable, ten-year old. Once Beans was seated, both families (and Beans) joined together in reciting grace and then they ate until they could eat no more.  
  
Mrs. Stevens, Mrs. Glass, Ren and Wendi talked and cleaned up the dishes and leftover food while the boys sat in the living room sleeping off dinner. Ren called Bobby to come over for dessert after the game; he said he'd be there.  
  
The game ended at about four o'clock; San Francisco beat Cleveland by a touchdown. Bobby called at ten after to tell Ren he'd be there in a few minutes and he was. After introducing Bobby to Wendi and Mr. and Mrs. Glass everyone sat back down at the table, with the exception of Beans who had gone home right after dinner, for dessert- fresh baked pumpkin pie. Everyone talked between bites.  
  
"Mrs. Stevens," Booker started.  
  
"Eileen, please," she replied.  
  
"Eileen," Booker started again, and then continued, "you make one mean pumpkin pie. What is your secret?"  
  
"Oh, there's no secret. It's the kind of pumpkin I buy. It's called a fairy tale pumpkin; they're green on the outside and orange on the inside. They're recommended for baking," she laughed.  
  
"We'll have to remember that, huh, Sandee?" Booker asked his wife.  
  
"We sho' do," she replied. "You said it was called a fairy tale pum'kin?" Sandee asked their host.  
  
Eileen had just put a bite in her mouth and was chewing, so she nodded and mumbled an, "hmm, mmm."  
  
"Thank you, so much, Eileen. Oh here, I'll get those dirty plates out of the way for ya. It's the least Ah could do," Sandee told her hostess. With that she cleared away the paper plates and left everyone else sitting at the table to talk amongst themselves.  
  
Ren and Bobby decided to move away from the table so they could talk privately. While watching the game Ren had decided that today would be as good as any to talk about baby names, so leaving Bobby in the living room with Louis, she went upstairs to fetch the baby name books she had borrowed from the library.  
  
When she came back she put a couple books in Bobby's lap, "what are these for?" he asked.  
  
"Well, I figured today would be a good day to choose baby names. And on the plus side, everyone here knows we're having a baby. We don't have to be sneaky about it," she said to him. Bobby agreed.  
  
"I guess I'll start with these books," he said. Ren had already starting flipping through the books she had to look through herself. Suddenly she got up and went back upstairs and came down with two notebooks and two pens. She threw a notebook and pen at Bobby; he caught them.  
  
"Here, right down some names that you like, one page for girls and one page for boys. I've already started a page for each. Once we're done we can compare our lists, which will make it easier to decide on the final names and then..." Ren would have continued, but Bobby kissed her suddenly on the lips causing her to forget what she was saying. Louis saw the whole thing, but decided to ignore it. Bobby pulled back after a moment.  
  
"I got it," he told her, leaning in for another short kiss before beginning his name lists. Ren nodded and started working on hers.  
  
About an hour later, the teens decided to stop and compare their lists, so they put both of their notebooks on the coffee table and Ren told Bobby how they would make the lists smaller: by crossing out all of the names that neither of them had in common, which were many. Bobby asked if they could both keep three names on each of their lists that they didn't have in common, but they both personally liked a lot. Ren liked the idea and chose three names from her girl list and three from her boy list that weren't on Bobby's lists; Bobby did the same, choosing names that weren't on either of Ren's lists.  
  
Ren suggested that they give their arguments to the other as to why their names should be considered, however this didn't work like she had hoped. Instead they fought pettily as to why Bobby Darren Deaver Jr. was better than Demetrius Jason Deaver and vice versa or why naming a kid Junior would give him an identity crisis. They also fought over why a kid shouldn't be named after a literary character or historical figure.  
  
"It's weird!" one would scream.  
  
"Not as weird as naming him or her after a dead president!" the other would scream. The adults were too in tune with their own conversation to notice, but Louis on the other hand did and would turn the volume of the television up during the more animated parts of the argument. Neither Bobby nor Ren seemed to notice though and the argument continued.  
  
"Why don't you like the name Reagan?"  
  
"Well, what's wrong with the name Caddy?"  
  
"Caddy is the name of the messed up sister in the Sound and the Fury."  
  
"So, I could've said Hermia or Ophelia."  
  
"I know you like Shakespeare just as much as the next person, but get real, naming a kid after a Shakespearean character is homicide."  
  
"Thanks a lot, we're getting real far. So far the only names we've agreed with are Jessica and Roger and THOSE are from a couple of cartoon characters!" The two continued fighting over names for sometime after that until Ren stated she didn't want to talk about baby names anymore because it was just making each one angrier with the other.  
  
"Fine. I don't want to do this anymore either. I'm going home, BYE and Happy Thanksgiving!" Bobby said angrily, getting up from the couch and walking to the door.  
  
"Fine, Leave!" Ren shouted. "Go home, Happy Thanksgiving to you too." None of the adults had heard anything and Louis was minding his own business for a change.  
  
However, Ren was fuming now, so she stomped upstairs to her bedroom and lay down to think. "Thanks for your help, Bobby," she said turning over on her other side. "Humph, thanks for nothing." She turned over again, but she couldn't get comfortable and she couldn't help thinking about the argument she had just had with her boyfriend. "I wish you could pick out your own name, it would make things so much less complicated," she mumbled to her belly and herself before drifting off to sleep, her hand resting on her abdomen.  
  
A/N 2: I hope you liked this chapter. I know it took forever to write, but it had to be perfect in my head. Please forgive me; I've been under so much stress lately. Good news though, there is less than a month until school gets out for me and then I will be free to write all I want, but until then I thank you all so much for your patience. I hope to have this story finished before I start college in the fall, heck I hope to have it finished before the end of summer. Please keep checking up on my profile page for updates on this story. It may take me a long time to write, but I have every intention of finishing.  
  
Finally, if anyone has any suggestions for names, I'd be more than happy to hear them, however I will have the final hand in selecting the name. I already have a couple picked out, but I may use one of yours if I like it better. : )  
  
Warning: Chapter 11 probably won't come until June. I have two big projects and a book to finish reading within the next two weeks. I already have an idea for the next chapter though. 


	11. A Slap in the Face and a Kick in the

Disclaimer: I do not own Even Stevens. The Walt Disney Co. does. Only the idea for this story belongs to me.  
  
Thanks to everyone who reviewed.  
  
Note to Mason03- Please don't be so impatient. It takes me a while to write chapters between school and work and such. I'm a very busy girl. I'm glad you like my story though and I hope to have chapters posted more frequently during the summer months.  
  
It has come to my attention that the symbol "l&quo" has appeared multiple times throughout some chapters of this story. I did not put them there; I cannot do anything about it. My theory is that it is the site, the time of day, or the kind of computer you have. Please do not ask me if I can do anything to get rid of it because I can't. Thank you for your patience and cooperation.  
  
A/N: Yay, school is out and I'm graduating Monday (June 7); I'm going to Disney World!! Sparkle and shine like the gems you are; please read and review.  
  
Ren's Perfect Mistake  
Chapter 11: A Slap in the Face and a Kick in the...  
  
It was three o'clock on the last day of school before winter break and Ren stood outside of the school newspaper office. She sighed heavily and opened the door; this was going to be the hardest thing she'd ever have to do. This was even harder than telling her parents that she was pregnant. Everyone looked up when she came in and smiled like they always did. Everyone except for Larry, who, as usual, sneered at Ren for holding the position he coveted the most-editor.  
  
Ren had been the editor of the Walton High School newspaper for the last year and a half. It was a lot better than being the editor of the Lawrence Junior High newspaper. She could do more than ever before. She took a deep breath and asked Mr. Greene, the teacher in charge of the newspaper, if she could talk with him.  
  
"Of course, Miss Stevens. Come into my office," he said. Ren followed. "Well, what did you need to talk to me about?" he asked.  
  
"I'm resigning. I name Larry Beale as the new editor," she replied hastily, not wanting to talk longer than she had to.  
  
"But, why Miss Stevens? You love being the editor of the 'Walton Wallaby Weekly'."  
  
Ren cringed at his question. 'Why did he have to ask why?' She knew he was one of the few teachers who didn't know about her pregnancy and she was going to keep it that way, but she couldn't lie to him. She thought for a few seconds before answering then said, "That's true, but I have a lot going on in my life right now and I don't think it would be fair to the staff or the rest of the student body if the work on the newspaper didn't get finished on time." Mr. Greene nodded. She had accomplished her goal. She hadn't lied to him and he still didn't know the whole reason why she was resigning.  
  
"I understand. Now, go tell Larry of your decision."  
  
"Thank you, Mr. Greene," Ren said heading out of his office.  
  
"You're very welcome, Miss Stevens. And feel free to come back any time."  
  
It had gone a lot easier than Ren had thought it would. And it was then that Ren realized that the hardest part was not telling Mr. Greene she was resigning, but telling Larry he was now the editor of the school newspaper. She had to get it over with now though. She walked back into the main printing room. Several staff members were working at computers, typing up stories for the next edition. She didn't see Larry at first; he was behind the printing machine. Ren cleared her throat and walked over to her own personal desk and began to clean out her stuff, noisily, hoping that Larry would hear and come to her. It was no use though; there was too much talking in the room. Ren decided it would be easier to just write a note to him, so she took a blank Christmas card out of her backpack and wrote:  
  
Dear Larry,  
  
I'm writing to tell you that I have resigned from the position of the school's newspaper editor. I have named you as my replacement. If you don't believe me, ask Mr. Greene. Enjoy your new job; I won't be back.  
  
Sincerely,  
  
Ren  
  
PS: Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!  
  
Satisfied with the note, Ren put the card in the envelope, sealed it, and handed it to Larry on her way out.  
  
Larry, more puzzled than he had ever been in his life opened the envelope immediately, pulled the greeting card out and read it. When he was finished his suspicions for Ren's strange behavior over the last few months deepened. He'd find out another time what she was trying to do, but for now, he'd celebrate his new position.  
  
Once Ren had finished her business in the newspaper office she met her brother at his locker and they went home together like they always did. Tears threatened Ren on the drive home, but she held them back. Louis could tell she was upset, but he didn't want to ask, not knowing whether it was emotional or hormonal.  
  
Mrs. Stevens was already home from work waiting for her two youngest children to get back from school on that chilly day in the middle of December, she wanted to take them Christmas shopping. Ren pulled in the driveway at about three-thirty, parked, got out, and went straight to her bedroom without even saying hello to her mother. Louis got out and locked up the car for her, then went inside himself.  
  
"Hello, Louis. How was your day at school?" Mrs. Stevens asked.  
  
"Oh, it was great, Ma. No work at all today, just parties."  
  
"That's great. Is something bothering Ren? I'm a little concerned."  
  
"I'm not sure, Ma. She seemed pretty upset on the ride home, but I wasn't asking," Louis replied.  
  
"Thanks, Lou. I'll go talk to her," Mrs. Stevens said, making her way up to Ren's bedroom. When she got there she knocked on the door and waited for the muffled answer to come through the closed door, but there was none that she could hear. "Ren, Honey, can I come in?" Eileen finally asked. She knocked again and still, there was no answer, so she opened the door and went in on her own. Ren was lying on her bed, her face buried in her beloved Mr. Pookie. Eileen sat down on the side of the bed next to her daughter and began running her hand through her long, brunette hair.  
  
Ren sat up and wiped the remains of tears from her cheeks. "Hi, Mom," she sniffled. Eileen put an arm around Ren and pulled her close.  
  
"Are you going to tell me what's wrong or will I have to pull it out of you bit by bit?" Eileen half joked.  
  
"I quit 'The Walton Wallaby'," Ren said looking down at her bedroom floor.  
  
"The school newspaper? But 'The Wallaby' was your life!" Eileen said surprised.  
  
"I know Mom. But I had to quit being the editor. It was a lot of work and I have more important priorities now," she said putting her hand on her stomach and leaning into her mother's embrace. "It was so hard..." Ren let the tears come again.  
  
"It's okay, Baby. I understand. Shh, shh," Eileen told her daughter rocking her back and forth in her arms. Ren calmed down some and Eileen kept talking. "I'll tell you what, when you're ready we can go out and go Christmas shopping. There're only five shopping days left until Christmas and I know you've been too busy to go anywhere lately."  
  
Ren nodded her head and sat up. She sniffled a little and dried the rest of her tears. She explained more why she quit the school newspaper. "I didn't think it would be fair if I were editing the paper and my head was somewhere else. It was so hard to quit, but it was even harder to hand the job over to Larry."  
  
"You gave your editing job to Larry Beale?" Eileen asked.  
  
"Yeah, he can give more time to it than I can right now, plus he wanted the job."  
  
"That was very big of you, Ren. And I'm proud of you," Mrs. Stevens said pulling Ren in for another hug. "So how about going to the mall now?"  
  
"I'd love to, Mom. I'm so far behind on my Christmas shopping it isn't even funny." Ren got up from her bed and got ready to go to the mall with her mother. Mrs. Stevens went downstairs and got ready too. Eileen had wanted Louis to go with them, but he said that he was finished with his shopping already, so it would just be her and Ren.  
  
Being only five shopping days until Christmas it was difficult to find a place to park at the mall, but eventually someone pulled out and the Stevens were able to stop. The two women decided to begin shopping together and get dinner before synchronizing their watches and splitting up to shop on their own. By the time they did this, it was nearly seven o'clock. That left three hours of shopping on their own time. From the splitting point Ren went to the left toward K.T. & Co. and Slivers. Eileen went to the right toward Josie's Department Store.  
  
Ren knew exactly what she wanted to get for her mom for Christmas and it was in K.T. & Co. Mrs. Stevens pointed it out every time she and Ren went into the home décor store and the best part was, it was fairly inexpensive for as big as it was. The only problem Ren would have would be getting it home. She couldn't carry it by herself, or get it out to the car for that matter, without her mother seeing it. But she had to get it for her mom; it was the one thing she was positive her mother wanted. She walked around the corner, spotted the store, and went inside only to find that there was only one left and that she'd have to get it now or put it on hold. So, she calmly walked up to the counter and asked the retailer if she could have it put on hold. The clerk told her, "no." Ren sighed and told the salesperson that she would be right back; that she just had to make a phone call.  
  
Little did Ren know that as she stepped out of the store to make her phone call at a nearby phone booth, a certain Larry Beale stepped into a certain home décor store.  
  
Ren dialed a number she knew all too well, her best friend, Ruby's, phone number. It rang a couple times before an older woman answered,  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"Hi. Mrs. Mendel? This is Ren..." she said biting her lip.  
  
"Hi, Sweetie and please, call me Babs."  
  
"Babs? Is Ruby there?"  
  
"Yeah, hold on Sweetie---Ruby, Phone!"  
  
"---Coming Ma!"  
  
"Hello---you can hang up the phone, Babs---Ruby speaking."  
  
"Hi, Ruby, it's Ren. I need your help..."  
  
"You're not in trouble are you? Did Bobby do something to you?" she asked, somewhat panicky.  
  
"NO, Ruby. I'm fine. I just need your help with getting a present for my mom home without her seeing it."  
  
"Oh! Well, what is it?"  
  
"Do you remember that chair that looked like a giant high heel shoe?"  
  
"The blue-green one at K.T. & Co.?"  
  
"The very same. Well, my mom's been pointing it out for months and there's only one left and the store won't hold it. So, you think you could meet me at the mall by eight?"  
  
"I'll be there, just let me tell my mom, 'kay?"  
  
"All right," Ren told her. She only had to wait a few seconds before Ruby was back on.  
  
"Babs says it's all right, so I'll meet you outside of K.T.'s?"  
  
"Right, seen you then. Bye-bye."  
  
"Bye." Both girls hung up at the same time. Ren decided to look in Slivers for a gift for Louis before going back into the home decorating store. She ended up getting him a blanket with his favorite cartoon character on it, slippers to match, and a pillow made out of cargo pants to go with it. Ruby was waiting for her outside of K.T.'s when she was finished.  
  
"You got here quick," Ren said, a bit surprised.  
  
"I know, there was hardly any traffic and I had all green lights coming over here."  
  
"Well, that's good. Come on," Ren said, Ruby following close behind her. Ren stopped suddenly upon entering the store almost causing Ruby to run smack into her.  
  
"What's wrong Ren?"  
  
"Larry Beale. And he's looking at the chair."  
  
"That doesn't mean he's going to buy it, Ren. You shouldn't be so paranoid."  
  
"That's exactly why I should be more paranoid."  
  
"Ren, let's just go in there and calmly tell him that your mom's been wanting it for months, okay? I'm sure he'll listen."  
  
"And I'm certain he'll give me hell about quitting the 'Wallaby' this afternoon."  
  
"You what? Ren, you loved working on the 'Wallaby'."  
  
"I know, but between doctor's visits and homework, it's all been too much. Come on; let's just go. I'll find something else for my mom."  
  
"Oh no you don't, Ren. I came all the way out here to help you get that chair back to your house and you're not going to even try and get it just because some immature guy is looking at it. I don't think so!" Ruby practically pushed Ren over to where Larry was standing. Ren squeaked a little and he looked up.  
  
"Well, well, well. If it isn't the student formally known as editor. I'd like to thank you so much for giving up your job for me. That was very kind of you, but do tell me, why did you give it up? I know how much you loved it," he told her smugly.  
  
Ren felt like she had just been slapped in the face by Larry's cruel comments. It was hard enough giving up her favorite job, let alone having him rub it in like salt in a wound. She felt very uncomfortable then and tried to cover her enlarged stomach with her purse. She thought for a moment before answering Larry. She decided to be vague about it and give him the same answer she gave Mr. Greene.  
  
"Well, Larry. There's just been a lot going on in my life recently and I didn't think it would be fair to the student body if their newspaper editor slacked off a little bit during the rest of the school year." Larry nodded; he seemed to except Ren's answer, but something told Ren that he didn't, at least not one hundred percent. She bit her lower lip and smiled slightly, praying that he chewed and digested her vagueness in whole, but he didn't and he shook his head.  
  
"No, that's not all of it Stevens, but I will find out sooner or later," his tone of voice sent chills down both Ren's and Ruby's spines. "See ya 'round Stevens, Mendel," he told the girls before leaving the store, thankfully without the chair.  
  
There were a few seconds of quiet before either girl said anything. Both girls had felt threatened by Beale's vow to discover Ren's secret, but neither of them said anything about it. Instead, they just went back to the matter at hand; the blue-green high heel chair.  
  
"See, Ren? What did I tell you? Just because he was looking at the chair didn't mean he was going to buy it." Ren rolled her eyes and nodded. She knew her best friend was right, but she didn't want to admit it. Just then something happened inside of her. She felt it and let out a small, surprised shriek.  
  
"What's wrong, Ren?" Ruby asked, startled. Ren had her hand covering her mouth, but Ruby could tell she was smiling. Then Ren let out a few giggles, mostly from embarrassment, but some from joy.  
  
And moving her hand from in front of her mouth she whispered, "The baby kicked..."  
  
A/N 2: Don't you all just love cliffhangers? What do you mean, "NO?" Oh well, sorry I had to do this (again). I figured that it's only been a couple weeks instead of a month since I've last updated and I wanted to get something posted. I already have ideas for the rest of the story and I hope (and pray) I'll have time to write within the next month. Also, sorry it's so short. Chapter 12, coming soon (I hope). LOL. Anyways, keep reading and reviewing. Tootles.  
  
A/N 3: Oops! I almost forgot. The store names that I used (i.e. K.T. & Co., Slivers, and Josie's Department Store) are all names that I made up (I think), if they are real places I did not know. 


	12. Christmas Joys

Disclaimer: I do not own Even Stevens. The Walt Disney Co. does. Only the idea for this story belongs to me.  
  
Note to Mason03: What! You've never seen a high heel shoe chair before? You poor deprived child (LOL). Well, if you want to see what one looks like check out this site (www.HighHeelShoeChair.com) it has lots of pictures of high heel shoe chairs. By the way, thanks for reviewing, it really motivated me to write the rest of chapter 11 and start chapter 12. I'm glad you like my story so much.  
  
Welcome Newbies!!  
  
Thank you for thinking of me SpinelliWoodsEsquire! (And for the review).  
  
Thank you MinnieLover!  
  
A/N: Once again it's been a few weeks between updates and I sincerely apologize for that. I've had a lot of headaches lately, but not that kind of headache (i.e. writer's block, thunderstorms [severe ones I might add] and several power outages). Sorry for the inconveniences. Sparkle and shine like the gems you are and review, Review, REVIEW!!! Enjoy too.  
  
Ren's Perfect Mistake  
Chapter 12: Christmas Joys  
  
"The baby kicked again!" Ren squealed excitedly, then she paused and thought for a few minutes. The look on her face changed almost instantly. Ruby could sense a feeling of regret.  
  
"What is it, Ren?" Ruby asked, concerned. Ren sighed heavily and answered.  
  
"I just wish..." Ren paused and took a deep breath, then continued, "I just wish Bobby and I hadn't had that stupid fight on Thanksgiving. We haven't really talked in almost a month besides a greeting in the halls or while working on something in class."  
  
"What? You never told me you and Bobby had another fight. I thought everything was okay between you guys now. What was the fight about anyway?" Ruby asked innocently. Ren started laughing.  
  
"It was..." she guffawed, "about..." Ren took a deep breath and tried to calm herself down. She repeated, "It was about...baby names!" She laughed some more. "It was so stupid..."  
  
"So, why haven't you called him to make up with him?" Ruby asked. Ren had finally calmed down.  
  
"I'm sick of being the person to call first and make up. If we're going to keep this child and raise it together he's got to grow up a little. And I think that I have a little more growing up to do too."  
  
"Ren. You are one of the most mature people I know. You don't have to finish growing up just because you have a kid on the way. Look at Babs!" Ren laughed again.  
  
"I guess you're right, Rube. But I don't want this kid calling me by my first name," she chuckled. Ruby laughed too. "Oo! It kicked again; here feel it," Ren said grabbing her best friend's hand and positioning it on her stomach. Ruby smiled.  
  
"I felt it!" she said. "Oh, this is so exciting." Both girls were smiling and laughing with joy.  
  
"I wish Bobby could be here," Ren said. Ruby took her cell phone out of her purse and handed it to Ren. "What's this for?" she asked.  
  
"Call Bobby and tell him for cripes sake! Who cares what happened on Thanksgiving; that's long over with." Ren looked at the phone. She wanted to call Bobby and tell him everything and she didn't. She thought about it for a few minutes before handing the phone back to Ruby. "Why aren't you calling Bobby?" Ren smiled.  
  
"I will. As soon as I pay for this chair and get it out to your car," Ren said, smirking slyly.  
  
"Glad to hear it, Ren," Ruby told her.  
  
"Glad to say it, Ruby," Ren said, and then she walked over to the cashier and paid for the blue-green high heel shoe chair. The best part was it was on sale for seventy-five percent off and K. T. & Co. was nice enough to lend the girls a cart to wheel the giant shoe out to Ruby's rusty 1991 Buick Skylark.  
  
It took a few minutes for Ruby to figure out how to try to lift the oddly shaped chair by herself (being that Ren was NOT to do any heavy lifting in her current state). It wasn't as heavy as it looked, but it was still heavy enough that she needed another person to help lift it, so the girls flagged down the next car they saw and a man about forty years old got out to help. Ruby thanked the man and even offered him a dollar for his services. He just laughed telling her not to worry about it, and that it was his pleasure to help her before he got back in his car and left. The girls were ready to go back into the mall when Ren realized she still had the bag from Slivers with Louis's presents in it with her, so she asked Ruby if she could leave them with her. Ruby, of course, didn't mind one bit.  
  
Once the girls were finished outside they returned the cart to the store and went to the food court to get dessert. That's when Ruby remembered the phone call that Ren needed to make, so she took out her cell phone again and handed it back to Ren. Ren took it without reluctance and dialed Bobby's cell phone number. It rang a couple of times before he answered.  
  
"Hello, who is this?" he asked.  
  
"Bobby, it's Ren. We need to talk."  
  
"I'm listening."  
  
"I don't want to fight anymore. We need to meet and sit down so we can look at the books and decide on names together," Ren paused, "I'm sorry I got so mad at you on Thanksgiving..." Bobby cut her off.  
  
"I'm the one who should be sorry. I wasn't listening to you then. And, to tell you the truth, I didn't want to listen to you then, but I'm listening now."  
  
"Thank you, Bobby, but there's something else, too."  
  
"What is it?" he asked, not sure what Ren was going to tell him next. Ren giggled causing Bobby to get even more anxious.  
  
"The baby started kicking today. I'd say no more than twenty minutes ago."  
  
"Really?"  
  
"Really! Well, that's all I wanted to tell you. I have to go, I'm using Ruby's cell phone."  
  
"Wait, where are you? I'll meet you there." Bobby said frantically.  
  
"I'm at the mall in the food court. Why?" Ren asked, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"Just wait there, okay?"  
  
"Okay, bye."  
  
"Bye." Ren hung up the phone and handed it back to Ruby.  
  
"What was that all about?" Ruby asked.  
  
"I'm not sure, but he wanted me to wait..." Ren stopped talking when she heard someone calling her name. It was Bobby and he was out of breath from running.  
  
"Good, you're still here," he said grabbing Ren's hand and kissing it.  
  
"Where did you come from?" Ren asked.  
  
"I was in the mall. When I found out you were here I dropped what I was doing and ran." He raised Ren's hand to his lips again. "I'm sorry I was such a jerk, Ren. And I've been thinking about you and the baby a lot lately. Please forgive me." His puppy dog eyes could make his worst enemy forgive him. Ren sighed.  
  
"I forgave you a long time ago, Bobby Deaver." He leaned in to hug her. "We have to master the art of compromise though, or this is never going to work."  
  
"You're absolutely right, Ren. Compromise is the most important thing right now. If there's no compromise, there's no Bobby, Ren, and Junior." Ren squinted her eyes and looked up at Bobby, who was now standing behind her chair.  
  
"I don't want to argue about names here, but think about it. Would you have wanted to be called Junior?" Bobby thought for a second.  
  
"It wouldn't bother me that much."  
  
"But it would still bother you. Now, think of it this way, you're only seventeen, do you REALLY," she emphasized, "want to be known as Bobby Deaver Senior?" He shook his head. "I didn't think so," Ren finished.  
  
"I guess I never thought of it that way before..." Ren cut him off.  
  
"So, you agree then?" Ren asked the father of her child.  
  
Bobby sighed heavily, "Yes."  
  
"Well, that really narrows it down, huh, Ren?" Ruby asked. Ren laughed at her friend's sarcasm and then the baby kicked, causing her to let out another small shriek.  
  
"What happened?" Bobby asked, alarmed. Ren grabbed his hand with one hand and lifted her sweater a little with the other, then, pressed his large fingertips on the small patch of exposed skin. He knew what was going on now. He felt a little bump and smiled broadly. "That's our baby," he whispered.  
  
"That's our baby," Ren repeated. She thought of something that made her laugh then. "I'm so glad this didn't start while we were still in school today. It's gonna take some time to get used to." Bobby chuckled at her remark then leaned in and gave her a kiss on the cheek.  
  
The three teenagers sat there for a while talking and joking and making plans. The baby kicked a few more times, startling Ren almost as much as the first time every time. Bobby and Ren planned to meet the day after Christmas to take another hit at choosing names, this time hopefully without bitter argument.  
  
Ren, curious of how long they'd been sitting there, looked at her watch, "Oh my gosh, it's already quarter till ten. I have to meet my mom. I'll see you later, Bobby. I love you! Oh, Ruby, you're absolutely positive that it'll be okay to leave the chair and the stuff for my brother at your house?"  
  
"It'll be fine, Ren, just go!"  
  
"See ya later!" Ren said walking at a slow, but steady pace on her way to meet her mother on the other side of the mall.  
  
Ren waved when she saw her mother standing outside of Josie's and Eileen waved back.  
  
"There you are. You're late, I was beginning to worry."  
  
"I know, I'm sorry," Ren said giving her mother a hug.  
  
"You don't have any bags with you. Did you do any shopping?"  
  
"Yes, actually, I did, but I left everything with Ruby because I don't want Louis to see what I got him when we get home. I'll bring it home tomorrow, after I wrap it."  
  
"Good idea, Ren," Eileen commented. Then Ren noticed her mother didn't have any bags with her either. "You don't seem to have done any shopping either, Mom."  
  
"They're in the car. It's mostly stuff for Louis and Donny though."  
  
"Oh!" Ren said nodding. "Well, I'm not done shopping yet and I didn't get much done today, so I'll probably go tomorrow; if that's okay?"  
  
"Of course it's okay. Are you ready to go?" Eileen asked.  
  
"Yeah, but there's one more thing I have to tell you," Ren said, attempting to stifle her giggles.  
  
"What is it, Honey? Go on," her mother encouraged her.  
  
"The baby started kicking!" Ren said excitedly.  
  
"That's wonderful, Honey, but we have to go; the mall is closing."  
  
Mother and daughter chatted in the car the whole way home and both women practically crashed when they walked in the door. It had been a long, but fairly exciting day, after all. So, after all of the shopping bags were brought in (and well hidden), Eileen and Ren sat down on the couch and fell asleep watching TV until Steve got home from an all day errand he had to run. Everybody slept in the next day to well past ten o'clock and the rest of the day was calm and stress-free.  
  
Ren was able to finish her shopping for her family fairly early in the day allotting her time to go see a movie with Ruby. There were only a few things left that she needed to get, but she would have to wait and get them later because Ruby was with her and she didn't know what to get for Bobby.  
  
After the movie the girls went back to Ruby's house so Ren could wrap all the gifts for her family except the chair for her mother. She had a different idea for that, so she brought her Polaroid camera with her. She would take a picture of the chair and wrap that. Not only would it be easier to carry, it would be far more interesting too. She could even wrap it in several boxes to make it look bigger. She asked what Ruby thought of the idea. Ruby thought it was brilliant. So that's what Ren did, and then she went home taking the wrapped gifts with her to place under the Christmas tree.  
  
Ren spent the next day with Bobby; he had needed a little help picking out a gift for his mother. She was able to find something for Ruby too. It was a fuzzy, purple CD case with the word "Spoiled" embroidered on it. Ren also got her the new Sofa-Toast CD to go with it. She finally decided that she would get Bobby a board game that he'd been looking at. It actually seemed really fun for a trivia game because it was all movie trivia. And Ren watched a lot of movies. It was easy enough to buy it behind his back too because he was busy making secret purchases of his own.  
  
The following day Ren spent relaxing and reading a book for school and the day after that was Christmas Eve, in which she spent most of the day collecting money for the Salvation Army with her mother at the airport. Donny and Wendi arrived later in the evening and everyone had a great time playing games and singing Christmas carols. Christmas Day came and went. Everyone loved what everybody got each other.  
  
Eileen was slightly confused about receiving a picture of the high heel shoe chair that she'd wanted for months, but when Ren explained that the actual piece of furniture was sitting in Ruby's basement waiting for her she smiled and hugged Ren tightly then inquired as to where Ren got the money for it. Ren teased that she'd never reveal her shopping secrets.  
  
Ren got a lot of stuff that she wanted, CD's, jewelry, movies, and what not? But it was one of the things that Louis had given her, while it was not for her, that she loved the most. It was a little yellow-orange koala beanie baby.  
  
"I know it's a little early, Ren," Louis muttered, "but, uh, well just look at the name on the tag." Ren opened the little heart-shaped tag up. Inside was written in bold, black letters, 'Pookie.'  
  
"Oh, Louis. Thank you," Ren said, starting to tear up. She hugged him tightly.  
  
"I was looking at it and when I read the name I remembered Mr. Pookie and how much you love that sock monkey and I thought it would be cute to get your kid a Pookie too," he babbled.  
  
"You don't have to explain, Lou," Ren told her brother giving him another hug. "This is the nicest thing I've got...Oo! I'm never going to get used to that before we go back to school," Ren said, putting a hand on her stomach. Louis asked if he could feel and Ren of course let him. As soon as Ren found the spot where the baby was kicking and positioned her brother's hand on it HE walked in.  
  
"Why does Louis have his hand on Ren's stomach?" Beans asked. "And is Ren gaining weight?"  
  
"Beans, why aren't you at home with YOUR family on Christmas? Hold on a sec; let me guess. Does it have to do with bacon?" Ren asked him.  
  
"No, why?" Beans asked. Ren squinted her eyes.  
  
"Never mind," she said. "Then why are you over here?"  
  
"Our cable's out and I wanted to watch "A Christmas Story." And are you gonna answer my questions?" he asked. Ren sighed. She might as well get it done and over with. He doesn't know anybody else at the high school except for Tawny and Twitty. And they already knew.  
  
"Yes, but you have to promise not to tell anybody. Okay Beans?"  
  
"I swear on all the bacon on Earth." The kid promised. Ren told him everything and let him feel the baby kick. Beans was amazed, he had never seen a pregnant woman before, at least not up close. And as usual, Beans stayed for dinner with the Stevens family.  
  
The rest of the day was spent snacking on cookies and watching Christmas movies. Although it was difficult to get the guys to turn off the movie "A Christmas Story," not that they hadn't watched it several times that day already.  
  
But Christmas was over now. And Ren was waiting for Bobby at the library with paper and the baby name books.  
  
A/N 2: I know it's overly fluffy and too short (even for my liking), but like I said, writer's block (nasty, nasty stuff). And if you think about the time of year this chapter is taking place well, it's somewhat acceptable. I would just like to point out a few things that I do NOT own. I don't own the name Sofa-Toast (even though it is not a real band), my friend Jill does; it was going to be the name of her band. I also do not own the rusty 1991 Buick Skylark (at least not anymore) or Pookie, the beanie baby thingy (but we do sell them at the store I work at). I also do not own the movie "A Christmas Story" (I never plan to either, not on video/DVD or anyway. I don't like this movie. It's very annoying. However, my high school's marching band is in it.) 


	13. A Promise Set In Stone

Disclaimer: I do not own Even Stevens. The Walt Disney Co. does. Only the idea for this story belongs to me.  
  
A/N: Hey everyone! Sorry once again for the long wait. I had college orientation. It has also come to my attention that I've dragged this story out so long that some of you have lost track of how many months Ren is along. I went back and counted; she is about 18 weeks or four and a half months. And about me not liking the movie "A Christmas Story"- well, that's a long story! Anyway, be the gems you are and review.  
  
Thanks a bunch reviewers!!!!  
  
Note to Squireli-yuna (I probably butchered that, sorry). You wrote in a review that you really enjoyed my writing and that I should think about writing professionally as an author. Well, maybe you'll see my work on a bookshelf someday because I am majoring in English/Creative Writing in college. I've even already begun writing an original novel, which I hope to have published one day.  
  
Ren's Perfect Mistake  
Chapter 13: A Promise Set in Stone  
  
Waiting for Bobby seemed to be taking a lifetime. Ren teased herself that their kid would be getting married and have children of his or her own by the time Bobby got there. She picked up a pencil from the table and started tapping it, but quietly, remembering that she was in a library.  
  
She waited a few minutes before finally opening one of the books to the first page of names, which just happened to be girls' names. She sighed. There were so many names just for the letter A and Bobby still hadn't arrived. "Abigail, Agatha, Alexandra, Amelia." The list went on and on. She read a few more names, "Andrea, Angela...Anika?"  
  
'What kind of name is that? It sounds like something a person would name their pet; not their child,' Ren thought. She continued looking through the book, "Anne." Ren had always liked that name, but it was so common, 'maybe I can use it as a middle name if it's a girl.' She wrote it down on a sheet of paper with a little "m" in parentheses to indicate middle name. Bobby finally arrived and nearly startled Ren as he sat down in the chair next to her.  
  
"Any luck?" he asked.  
  
"Not really. What took you so long?" she inquired.  
  
"Traffic and I had to stop at a couple places first," he said.  
  
"Oh. We should get started," Ren said noncommittally.  
  
"Before we get started, I have something I wanted to give you," Bobby said. Ren smiled, unknowingly.  
  
"We already exchanged Christmas gifts."  
  
"I know," he told her, "but this isn't part of any holiday package." Bobby pulled out a small, plainly wrapped box. Ren's heart skipped a beat. "Open it." Ren carefully removed the light blue wrapping paper from the small box and then opened it up to reveal a ring. Not just any ring, but a diamond ring with two tiny gems on either side of the small, but sparkling stone. Ren looked at Bobby in awe and confusion. "It's not what you think, Ren," he said, trying to reassure her. "I hope it fits. It's a promise ring." Ren tried it on. It fit nicely.  
  
"I don't know what to say," Ren said. "Just out of curiosity though, what are you promising?" Bobby cleared his throat very quietly.  
  
"I'm promising the world. Devotion, honesty, love, support; I'm promising it all to you and our child. This is a promise that I'll honor any choice you make now or in the future. It's not an engagement ring; it doesn't mean we have to get married." Ren hugged Bobby. Tears were trickling down her face. The baby kicked and she yelped. One of the many librarians shushed her, but she didn't care.  
  
Once she was done crying she whispered, "thank you, Bobby Deaver. I love you," in his ear and kissed him gently on the cheek before preparing to search through the baby name books again.  
  
After only an hour and a half Ren and Bobby had finished going through two of the three baby name books with little luck. Sure there was a long list of both girls' and boys' names, but it was too long. Neither teenager could agree with each other on what to name their baby.  
  
Ren suggested just starting over. Bobby thought about it for a few minutes before agreeing with her. But before they started looking through a book called "Name Your Baby" again, Bobby suggested they narrow their choices down first. Ren thought that was the best thing she'd heard all day. So they both started to think of ways to narrow down their options.  
  
"Well, we already agree that this child isn't going to be named Junior if it's a boy," Bobby remarked. "So," he continued, "why don't we eliminate naming this baby after anybody in either of our families?"  
  
"I like that idea, Bobby. And, while we're on the subject of naming this baby after people, let's not intentionally name him or her after famous people. Real or literary."  
  
"And let's not give this baby a common name. Do you have any idea how many Bobs, Bobbies, and Roberts there are?"  
  
"Yeah, but we can't name this baby something too out of the ordinary either. They'd be teased."  
  
"You've got a point, Ren," Bobby said. "I think that narrows it down quite a bit."  
  
"Yeah, but I think we could narrow it down even more," Ren replied.  
  
"Okay...what about eliminating names that begin with certain letters of the alphabet?"  
  
"But what letters? That's the problem. Wait a minute, I know. We can eliminate names that begin with the letters 'D' or 'S' or 'R.'"  
  
"Why those letters?" Bobby asked, not completely sure why Ren had chosen those letters specifically.  
  
"Think about it Bobby. Your last name starts with 'D.' My last name starts with 'S.' And both of our first names begin with the letter 'R.'" Ren said.  
  
"Okay," Bobby agreed. "Let's get this show on the road." And that's what they did.  
  
Starting on the first page of girls' names and ending on the last page of boys' names, Ren and Bobby began picking out the names they agreed on. They were even able to eliminate names that began with the letters 'B', 'Q', 'U', and 'Y.'  
  
The library was nearly ready to close by the time the teens had completed their lists. Making so many eliminations had helped. There were only about twenty-five names on each list instead of a hundred, but there was no time to pick a name now. They'd have to go back to someone's house because the library was closing and the librarians were shooing people out the door.  
  
"I want to get this done and over with today," Ren sighed. "If we wait too long, I might change my mind about some of the things we've eliminated. So..."  
  
"I'll meet you at your house. It shouldn't take more than an hour now to decide on final names," Bobby reassured her, pulling her in for a hug. He kissed her on the forehead and patted her belly lightly before letting her go and getting into his car.  
  
Ren was the first to pull into her driveway. Bobby came in at a close second parking on the street, but got out of his car first to help his girlfriend out of her car and to carry all of their materials inside.  
  
They were both surprised to find that nobody was home, not even Louis. However, there was a note on the fridge that said Ren's parents had gone to a movie and Louis was at Twitty's. And there was another note by the phone saying that Ruby had called her and wanted her to call back.  
  
"That can wait. I'm sure that whatever Ruby has to say can be said when we're done. But right now, I'm starving," Ren commented then began to dig through the refrigerator. Bobby only nodded and set their stuff on the kitchen table.  
  
After eating dinner, which consisted of Christmas leftovers and ice cream, they set to work on finally choosing a name for their child. This time they started with the boys' names being that the list was much smaller than the girls.'  
  
The first name on the boys' list was 'Arthur' followed by 'Casey, Chase, Egan, Gryphon, Holden, Ira, Jareth, Jude, Keith, Kermit, Kosmo, Lock, Michael, Murphy, Nigel, Owen, Phillip, Timothy, Walter, Xavier,' and last but not least, 'Zephyr.'  
  
"That's a lot of names," Bobby mumbled. Ren nodded her agreement.  
  
"Well, it's less than we had to begin with," she smiled. "Why don't we just start with the first name on the list: 'Arthur'. I like it as a first name, but what about a middle name?"  
  
"What about 'Gryphon'?" Bobby suggested.  
  
"I don't know. We should listen to how it sounds first," Ren paused, "'Arthur Gryphon Deaver'. It sounds okay, but it's a little long."  
  
"Then why don't we use 'Gryphon' as the first name and forget a middle name?" Bobby said.  
  
"I'd like our child to have a middle name, Bobby," Ren said. "It just sounds more regal."  
  
"You have a point. Hey, what about 'Gryphon Chase' or 'Gryphon Murphy'?" Bobby said, trying to be helpful.  
  
"I'd hate to be critical, Bobby," Ren said placing her hand on her belly where the baby kicked, "but 'Gryphon Murphy' is still a bit too long. I like the name 'Gryphon Chase' though."  
  
"Okay, listen to how it sounds, 'Gryphon Chase Deaver'." Ren giggled.  
  
"I really like the name, but it sounds like a poorly constructed sentence." She continued chuckling for a few more minutes. "Let's move onto the next name. I think we could eliminate 'Chase' don't you?"  
  
"Couldn't we put it on something like a reserve list so we could come back to it later. That is, if we like it."  
  
"That's a great idea, Bobby!" Ren exclaimed. "Okay, the next name on the boys' list is 'Casey'..."  
  
Bobby had been way wrong about it taking less than an hour to pick out both final names because the next two hours were spent choosing, mixing, and eliminating names; and that was just for the boys' list. At the end of those two hours though, they had narrowed it down to two names: 'Gryphon Chase' and 'Owen Murphy'. Bobby and Ren were at their wits' end and were tired of picking names; they couldn't decide. They thought about pulling a name from a hat, but they thought that it might be too random, so they decided to leave it alone for a time. They sat on the couch resting and talking about Christmas until Mr. and Mrs. Stevens got home from the movie.  
  
"Hi, Ren. Did you see the notes, Honey?" Eileen asked her daughter. Ren sighed heavily.  
  
"Yeah Mom," Ren replied. Eileen walked around into the living room. Steve was still in the kitchen making coffee.  
  
"Oh, hi Bobby. I didn't see you when I walked in."  
  
"Hi, Mrs. Stevens," he replied, nearly yawning.  
  
"Oh my, you two look exhausted. What have you been doing?"  
  
"Picking baby names," Ren sighed. "And we can't deci...wait a minute!" Ren said, her energy returning. "Why didn't I think of it before? Names have meanings. We could look at the names' meanings and whichever sounds nicer will be the one we pick. I guess I was just too tired think of it before," she announced, picking up the baby names book and looking up definitions.  
  
"Oh? Well, what names did you pick?" Eileen asked, curiously.  
  
"We only got through the boys' names, but our two choices were 'Gryphon Chase' and 'Owen Murphy'." Ren said, still flipping through pages for the definitions. "Okay...um, here it is; 'Chase' means "hunter"... 'Gryphon' means, "hooked nose." Ren bit her bottom lip, she wasn't sure she liked that meaning. She saw both Bobby and her mother sort of cringe, but she continued. "'Murphy' means "sea-warrior" and... 'Owen' means, "born to nobility" or "young warrior." She liked that a lot better. It seemed that the others did too. She thought about it for a few minutes. "Bobby," she asked, "didn't you say your grandfather was in the Navy?"  
  
"Yeah, actually a lot of the men in my family were in the Navy." Ren smiled.  
  
"So, what do you think of the name 'Owen Murphy'? Roughly translated it would mean "noble young sea-warrior." Bobby smiled broadly and embraced Ren in a hug.  
  
"I like it a lot," he told her, giving her a kiss on the cheek. He let go and everybody sat down on the couch feeling awake again. Steve came into the living room and sat down too.  
  
"So, what's all the hubbub about?" he asked.  
  
"Ren and Bobby just decided on a name if they have a boy."  
  
"That's great! What is it?"  
  
"Owen Murphy," Ren told him proudly. "And I almost forgot. Look what Bobby gave me today!" she said holding out her right hand for her parents to see the promise ring.  
  
"Oh, it's lovely!" Mrs. Stevens exclaimed. "It's not...?"  
  
"An engagement ring. No, it's a promise ring. Bobby's promised to be there for me and the baby and to support any decisions I make for the future," Ren said happily.  
  
"We're glad for you, Honey," Eileen told her daughter then went into the kitchen to make dinner for her and her husband. Steve followed her leaving Ren and Bobby alone with the baby names book.  
  
"Now on to the girls' names!" Ren said.  
  
With as many girls' names that the two teens had on their list (twenty-six to be exact), it didn't even take them half as long as it did with the boys' names because they had a system. They were able to narrow it down to only three names: 'Mackenzie Page', 'Felicia Grace', and 'Natalie Vanessa'.  
  
"Okay, now to finally choose a girls' name," Bobby said opening up the baby names book to 'F' to find the name 'Felicia'. "Ready?" he asked. Ren nodded. "'Felicia' means "fortunate or happy," he paused "'Grace' obviously means "graceful." He flipped through a few more pages stopping on 'M'. "Alright, 'Mackenzie' means "daughter of the wise leader."  
  
"Oh, I like that," Ren interjected. Bobby chuckled and continued.  
  
"'Natalie' this name means, "born on Christmas day?". The baby is due in May. Right, Ren?"  
  
"As far as I know. Discard the name 'Natalie Vanessa' and look up 'Page'." And that's what Bobby did.  
  
"Okay, 'Page' means "young assistant," he finished, looking up. Ren was thinking.  
  
"I really like both names that are left. What about you, Bobby?"  
  
"I like both names too, but I think that I like 'Felicia Grace' the most," he replied.  
  
"Yeah? Well, I'm happy with it if you are. And I think we've been pretty fortunate throughout this whole ordeal..."  
  
"Not to mention the grace and maturation you've both shown," Eileen said walking back into the living room from the kitchen. "I think 'Felicia Grace' is the perfect name if you have a girl."  
  
"Thanks, Mom," Ren said giving her mother a hug. The baby kicked and she placed her hand on her stomach. She looked at the clock. It was already ten-thirty. Bobby had noticed too.  
  
"Well, I guess I better get going. It's kinda late," Bobby said, pulling his jacket on. Ren walked over and gave Bobby a hug and a kiss.  
  
"We're done," she sighed. "I'll see you later. Love you."  
  
"Love you, too," he said as he walked out the door. Ren closed the door behind him then went back over and sat on the couch.  
  
Eileen sat down next to her. "Did you call Ruby back, Ren?" she asked. "Because she sounded really excited about something."  
  
"Not yet. Do you think it's too late to call her now?"  
  
"I don't see why it would be. You don't have school tomorrow." Ren nodded and picked up the cordless phone. She dialed her best friend's number and waited for her to answer.  
  
"Hello?" It was Ruby and she was laughing hysterically. "Hello?" she repeated a little calmer.  
  
"Hi, Ruby!" Ren said. "You called earlier?"  
  
"Yeah! Oh My Gosh, Ren. You are never going to believe who's in town..."  
  
A/N 2: Aw geez, I gone and dunnit again. I left a cliffhanger, bwahahahahaha!!! Who could possibly be in town? Find out in Chapter 14 of Ren's Perfect Mistake. Once again, sorry for the wait. I hope you've enjoyed the story thus far. Please review. Tootles!

PS: I do not own any book called Name Your Baby, I'm not even sure if it's a real title.


	14. A Run of the Mills Day

Disclaimer: I do not own Even Stevens. The Walt Disney Co. does. Only the idea for this story belongs to me.  
  
Thanks for all the reviews and welcome newbies!!!  
  
A/N: Wow less than a week for me to update! How did that happen? Yes, I left another cliffhanger at the end of chapter 13 and that wasn't very nice of me. Sorry, I couldn't resist. Who's in town? Find out in this chapter. Anywho, I'm so happy that so many people have been enjoying my story so far and there will be many more chapters to come (hopefully). Here it is, chapter 14. Enjoy! So, be the gems that I know all of you are, read and review.  
  
Ren's Perfect Mistake  
Chapter 14: A Run of the Mills Day  
  
Ren could think of more places that she'd rather be on New Year's Eve than standing outside in the cold at the crowded plaza in downtown Sacramento. Sure she was with her two best friends in the whole world, but her back was sore and she couldn't remember the last time she'd had to pee so badly. 'Just suck it up, Ren,' she told herself. 'At least it's not as cold as it would be in, say, Times Square in New York. Where Bobby is on his annual pilgrimage with his family. He's probably freezing his arse off,' she laughed. She looked at her watch; it was nine o'clock. "Well, happy new year to the east coast," she mumbled.  
  
"What was that, Ren?" Ruby asked. "I couldn't hear you." Ren had been caught somewhat off guard.  
  
"Oh, nothing important. I was just noting that it was already 2004 on the east coast." Ruby looked at her cell phone for the time.  
  
"I guess it is. That means only three more hours to go and The Wishing Stars are performing next." Ren smiled. At least the evening wasn't an entire waste of time. The band began setting up on stage after a few minutes and Cynthia Mills, a reporter from the local news station, introduced them. She also made sure to announce that she'd be doing a story on how Senator Eileen Stevens of Sacramento spent her New Year's Day on tomorrow's six o'clock news. Ren, Louis, and even Beans had agreed to make themselves scarce after an incident involving an interview several years beforehand. Ren shuddered to think about the outfits that they were forced to wear. And after Louis and Twitty's smartest kid in the world stunt just so they could meet Zippy Winds, Ren preferred not to think of it. Besides Cynthia Mills was just plain stuck up and only cared about her ratings, which were dropping as fast as Ren was putting on weight.  
  
"Where could she be?" Ruby said out loud, though mostly to herself. "She missed her favorite group." Ren overheard her.  
  
"She probably just got stuck in the crowd on the way back from the bathrooms, so why don't you just call her. She has her cell right?" Ren asked.  
  
"I guess you're right, Ren. I'll give it a try, but..."  
  
"And speaking of the restroom," Ren interrupted, "I have to go. If I see her I'll tell her you're looking for her." Ruby squinted her eyes.  
  
"All right, Ren, but you're gonna miss New Tattoo!" Ruby shouted after her, but she was already gone. Pregnant or not, Ren was fast.  
  
Ren turned the corner to find Monique talking to a few of her old cheerleader pals. Monique had just returned to Sacramento for the holiday. She'd moved to Cleveland only a couple months after eighth grade graduation since her mom had gotten a job offer she couldn't refuse. That had been the reason Ruby had called on the day after Christmas. Monique would only be staying for a week. She was spending the night at Ruby's tonight.  
  
Ren was invited, but decided it would be better if she just went home for the night, due to her current "condition." Ren laughed thinking about when she went over Ruby's the second day after Christmas to be reunited with one of her best friends after nearly three years. She was still the same old Monique Taylor from Lawrence Junior High except she had shed a few pounds; she was also slightly taller. And the look on her face when Ren had told her that she was pregnant was priceless.  
  
Flashback  
  
Ren, Ruby, and Monique had all been sitting on Ruby's enclosed front porch on that second day after Christmas talking when Monique said something about Ren gaining weight.  
  
"Hey, Ren! You might wanna lay off the potato chips, Girl," Monique teased, "Cuz you've put on some pounds since the last time I saw you." Ren and Ruby had been laughing too, but became silent quickly. Monique noticed the change in the atmosphere at once. "Oh gosh, I didn't offend nobody, did I? Cuz if I did, I'm real sorry."  
  
"You don't have to apologize, Monique," Ren said. "I have gained weight, but not because of too many potato chips," she told her friend, resting her hands on her stomach. Monique was baffled.  
  
Ruby pulled Ren off to the other side of the porch. "Are you going to tell her or am I?" Ruby whispered.  
  
"I'm going to tell her, okay?" Ren replied.  
  
"Okay." The girls walked back over the other side of the porch.  
  
"Monique, I have something that I need to tell you. You probably won't believe me, in fact I know you won't believe me, but hear me out."  
  
"Kay, I'm listenin'."  
  
Ren smiled broadly, her perfect white teeth sparkling brightly. She sat down back in the chair she'd been sitting in and told her. "Monique, I'm going to have a baby; I'm pregnant." Monique's jaw dropped. Ruby let out a giggle she'd been suppressing. Ren couldn't forget the eager entourage of comments and questions that followed.  
  
"You're pullin' my leg!" Monique exclaimed.  
  
"Actually," Ruby said, "Ren Stevens IS going to be a mommy."  
  
"Not uh. You mus' be talkin' 'bout some other Ren Stevens cuz the Ren I knew would never do that 'fore she got married," Monique said quickly.  
  
"Well, I am and I did do "that" before I got married. And now I'm here, nearly five months pregnant."  
  
"Jason the daddy, right? Cuz he was one FINE hunk a man."  
  
"Actually, no," Ren had replied, tensing up. She didn't like talking about Jason, the actor who played the charming Mootai from the hidden camera game show, Family Fake Out.  
  
"What d'ya mean, "no?" You two was like two peas in a pod when I left." Monique snorted.  
  
"Yeah, things just didn't work out. Let's just say he was a better actor than anyone thought he was," Ren told Monique.  
  
Ruby sat back. She knew the whole story and she knew how Ren felt about the whole ordeal. She'd hoped Monique would just leave it at that, but leaving it "at that" was never good enough for her.  
  
"You ain't gonna tell me what happened? I thought we were friends," Monique pouted. Ren hated it when people used that line on her.  
  
'I thought we were friends', humph,' Ren thought. "I guess I can tell you since it didn't make the news," Ren told her.  
  
"Good. And don't leave anythin' out. I want details then I wanna know who the daddy is, or do you know?"  
  
"I know who the father of my baby is," Ren said matter-of-factly and somewhat disgusted, though the tone of her voice didn't reveal it. "Do you want to know what happened with Jason or not?"  
  
"Of course, go on," Monique urged.  
  
"Well, for one thing, I found out that he was in his mid-twenties already and I was only fourteen," Ren paused, if that hadn't been bad enough. "And the reason I found out he was almost ten years older than me was that he was a drug dealer. He didn't use anything, but he did a lot of trafficking, as I found out later," she paused again and swallowed hard. "I was in the car with him when he was pulled over and arrested. I might have been arrested too if he hadn't vouched for me that I hadn't known anything about him being a wanted drug trafficker until that moment. Anyway, that was over two years ago. He's in a federal prison now and I'm WAY over him. End of story."  
  
"That's awful, Ren!" Monique exclaimed. "Now you gonna tell who the daddy is and please don't say it's Gribalski," she said wrinkling her nose.  
  
"No fear, it's not Tom," Ren reassured. "It's..." she began again, but was cut off.  
  
"It ain't Twitty, is it?"  
  
"No, Monique," Ren sighed. "It's not Twitty. It's Bobby."  
  
"Bobby, as in Bobby Deaver?" Monique asked. "I thought he moved."  
  
"He did, and when he moved back to Sacramento about a year and a half ago we got back together. And this past summer, surprise! We're going to be parents. Just promise me you won't say anything to anybody. We're kinda laying low for as long as we possibly can."  
  
"You've got my word. So," she changed the subject, "is Larry Beale still as fine as he was in junior high?" Ren and Ruby both rolled their eyes and burst out laughing. Monique would never change. It was always, boys, boys, boys.  
  
End Flashback  
  
Ren came back to reality then and walked over to Monique to tell her that Ruby was looking for her.  
  
"Oh, hey, Ren! You 'member Stacy, Tiffany, and Michelle don't you?"  
  
"Yeah, hi. Happy New Year! I just came over to tell Monique that Ruby was looking for her."  
  
"She is? Oh, I guess I did leave you guys a while back. Where you goin' Ren?"  
  
"Just running to the restroom. I'll be back. Nice seeing you girls again."  
  
"Yeah, see you back in school, Ren!" one of the girls shouted back at her. "And Happy New Year to you too."  
  
Ren found the restrooms quickly, but getting to use them would take some time. The line of women waiting to get in stretched to almost the end of the block. She got in line at the end to wait her turn. Not only would she miss New Tattoo, she'd probably miss Back to the Beach (a local Beach Boys tribute band) and Kismet Thompson too. But the line moved quicker than she had expected and she was able to get back before Back to the Beach played their version of "Kokomo". Monique was standing by Ruby when she got back.  
  
"Oh, good, Ren. You're back already. Look what we got for you," Monique said handing her a glow in the dark necklace. She hadn't noticed before, but Ruby and Monique were wearing them too. She slipped it over her head.  
  
"Um...thanks, Mo. What do I owe you?"  
  
"Nothin', Girl. It's on the house."  
  
"Thank you," Ren smiled then turned to look at the stage. The band had stopped playing and Cynthia Mills was back introducing yet the next performer. Monique commented that she couldn't believe she was still doing the news after the horrible ratings she'd gotten three years ago. Cynthia once again added that she was doing a story on Senator Stevens on New Years Day. Monique had something to say about that too, but Ren only ignored her.  
  
It was ten to midnight and the final band was just starting to play their last song. Watching them was all Ren could do to keep from thinking about the pain in her feet and back. Ren had thought about sitting on the ground, but she didn't know if she'd be able to get back up. Not to mention the baby was becoming incredibly active, too, causing her to shriek a couple of times out of surprise. The band finished playing and everything was cleared from the stage for the final countdown. Miles McDermott, ex-host of Family Fake Out, took the stage with Cynthia Mills for the last minute of the countdown to '04.  
  
The last ten seconds countdown began and the entire crowd joined in, including Ren. "TEN, NINE, EIGHT, SEVEN, SIX, FIVE, FOUR, THREE, TWO, ONE. HAPPY NEW YEAR!" the entire crowd shouted. Streamers and confetti were dropped from the surrounding buildings; it almost looked like it was snowing. And balloons were released from a selected group of children on the stage. Cynthia and Miles began talking about their new year's resolutions and people began filing out to go home and so did the three girls.  
  
It didn't take long to get to Ruby's car, they had arrived fairly early and had gotten close parking, but the traffic trying to get out of the parking lot was atrocious, so they ended up sitting for a good forty- five minutes before even trying to move, at which point there was hardly any traffic at all and the ride home was fairly quick. At that moment Ren thought that the car was the greatest invention since sliced bread.  
  
It was one-thirty when Ruby dropped Ren off at her house. Ren said goodbye to the two girls and went in. When she walked in the door she could see Eileen, Steve, Twitty, and Tawny in the family room playing a fetching game of Scrabble, but no Louis, which she thought was odd, but when she heard the microwave she knew exactly where he was. Everyone was so into the game that nobody noticed Ren had walked in. Which was good in her mind because all she wanted was to go upstairs and go to bed. But she was too late because Louis saw her on his way back from the kitchen.  
  
"Oh, hey, Ren. How was the New Year's bash?"  
  
"Great," Ren mumbled. He hadn't heard her. "Hey Louis! It was good, but I'm exhausted. And my back hurts. How was your New Years bash?" she smiled.  
  
"Same old, same old," Louis said. He walked over closer to where she was standing and cupped his hands over her ear and said: "This is the third time we've played Scrabble tonight. I've already lost twice. I'm dyin' Ren. Will you join my team? Please," he begged.  
  
Ren thought about it. She was really tired and just wanted to go to bed. 'He did ask nicely,' she thought. "How much longer do you have to go?"  
  
"Not long. So, whaddaya say, Partner...hmm?" he asked, raising his eyebrows. Ren rolled her eyes.  
  
"I'm in, but I'm not staying up past two."  
  
"Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you, Ren!" he said excitedly. Ren followed her younger brother into the living room and sat down in his chair. Everyone acknowledged her presence and they continued with their game without protest that she was helping her brother. Louis just sat down on the floor next to her. They were up next.  
  
Ren looked at his letters. 'I, C, O, G, A, L, L.' They were fairly decent letters, but the game was half way through and space was limited, then Ren saw an open spot, on a triple word score nonetheless, and connected the word 'LOGIC' with the word 'SPARKS', giving Louis thirty-some points.  
  
The game ended a few minutes after two. With Ren's help Louis won by two points in a come-from-behind win. That made Louis happy. Ren was just happy she could finally go to bed. Tawny and Twitty were staying the night, as it was too late to go home.  
  
Despite being up late the night before everyone was up early so they could "vanish" before Cynthia Mills arrived. Everyone except Eileen and Steve had some place to be other than home. Which is exactly where Eileen wanted them to be. Everyone would have been gone before noon, which was when the interview was scheduled for originally, but Cynthia Mills, not having anything better to do than pester the senator, was there forty-five minutes early. Ren was running slightly behind as she was still sore from the previous night.  
  
Ren was brushing her teeth when the doorbell rang.  
  
"Oh crap!" she exclaimed. She looked at the clock in the bathroom. It was only quarter after eleven. She finished brushing her teeth quickly. 'That can't be her, could it? And if it is, how am I going to get out of here without her or the camera noticing?' Luckily she was already dressed. Someone rang the doorbell again and pounded on the door.  
  
"Mom?" Ren shouted.  
  
"Yes, Honey?"  
  
"I think she's here."  
  
"I know. I heard the doorbell. She's early."  
  
"She probably doesn't have anything better to do," Ren snidely remarked.  
  
"I'm not even ready yet. I don't have any makeup on or my hair done. And how come you're still here? I thought you were leaving with Louis and his friends."  
  
"I was," Ren replied, "but my back was still a little sore from last night and I told them to go ahead without me. I didn't think she'd get here so soon." There was another round of ringing and pounding. Steve walked past the bathroom.  
  
"Do you want me to get that, Dear?" he asked Eileen. She froze.  
  
"Uh...um...I don't know. I guess it couldn't hurt. They aren't going to leave. All right Steve, answer it. Tell them I'll be down in a minute or two." Ren was a bit alarmed.  
  
"Mom? Mom! How am I supposed to get out of the house?" Ren asked.  
  
"Good question, Honey. I don't know," Eileen said sorrowfully. She thought for a few seconds and her eyes lit up, "Hey, I know! I'll go downstairs and try to distract them while you sneak out the front door."  
  
"Do you think it'll work?" Ren asked with hope.  
  
"I certainly hope so. How do I look?"  
  
"You look great, Mom?" Ren replied. Eileen then went downstairs for her interview makeup-less, jewelry-less, and without any style to her hair. Ren followed her to the top of the steps so she could watch to know when to make her escape. There were cameras everywhere. Cynthia was sitting down on the couch in the living room.  
  
"Good morning, Senator Stevens. Thank you so much for letting me into your home for this interview," she said chipperly.  
  
"Oh, you're very welcome, Miss Mills. Would you like a cup of coffee or tea or anything?"  
  
"Oh, no thank you, Senator. Why don't we get this interview started?" Eileen had a sheer look of terror on her face. She had wanted them to follow her into the kitchen. Ren bit her bottom lip; things weren't looking good.  
  
"Okay," Eileen said, "but why don't we start our interview in the kitchen. That way I can show you how I make my traditional New Years cookies," she lied. She gave a thumbs-up to Ren who was still standing at the top of the steps. Ren mouthed a 'thank you' back and watched as the reporter and the camera team followed her mother into the kitchen to watch her bake the "traditional New Years cookies." Ren was able to sneak out the front door without a hitch. Once Ren was outside she let go a sigh of relief then left to meet her brother and his friends at the local arcade.  
  
Ren and Louis only returned home after they felt it was safe and Cynthia-free. And that was at six o'clock at night when the story was supposed to run. When the brother and sister came in, Eileen and Steve were sitting in the living room with a bowl of popcorn with the news turned on. They were just in time to see the interview, so they sat down and watched it with their parents.  
  
"Now on to Cynthia with an interview with Sacramento's own Senator Eileen Stevens," the newscaster on the T.V. said.  
  
"Thank you, Greg," Cynthia said. The screen showed a picture of her standing outside the Stevens' home. "I'm right outside Senator Stevens' house right now waiting to get in for an interview," she said, and then she started ringing and pounding on the door. Mr. Stevens answered.  
  
"Good morning, Miss Mills. Come on in and make yourself at home. My wife will be down in a few minutes; just have a seat in the living room." The next scene had been edited and Eileen was now leading the reporter and the camera crew into the kitchen to show how she made her "traditional New Years cookies." Everybody had a good laugh about that because she never baked any "traditional New Years cookies."  
  
The camera was now focused on her digging through the cupboards to find the ingredients only to find she was "out" of the most important thing and couldn't bake her cookies. And the rest was taped back in the living room, just an ordinary interview.  
  
"And this has been Cynthia Mills. Back to you, Greg!" she said smiling stupidly and obviously humiliated.  
  
"All right, Mom!" Louis exclaimed. "High Five!" Eileen gave her son a high five, then stood up and mock bowed.  
  
"I'd like to thank the Academy," she goofed.  
  
"You're a lifesaver, Mom. Thank you so much," Ren said.  
  
"You're welcome, Honey," Eileen said, giving Ren a hug. "Now what do you say we all go out and celebrate?" Eileen said.  
  
"Can I come too?" a voice asked and everyone jumped. It was only Beans. Where he'd come from nobody could tell, but Eileen said he could go too. Everyone cheered and they left for a fun night of celebrating.  
  
A/N 2: Hey everyone! Can you believe I have another chapter up in less than a week? This probably won't happen again unless I'm struck with some extra juicy ideas. Anyway, just a warning that it might be a while before the next chapter is up because we just got a new computer and it has to be set up, so I have to clear everything and I mean EVERYTHING from the computer I've been using to write this story. Hopefully it won't take too terribly long. Also, I'll be on vacation about two weeks from now and won't be able to publish anything during that time. Whether I get a chapter (or two [unlikely but possible]) up before that time I don't know. Anyway, if you write: keep writing, if you read and review: keep doing those. Also, keep smiling no matter who you are.  
  
PS: I obviously made up a lot of band names (i.e. The Wishing Stars, New Tattoo, Back to the Beach, and Kismet Thompson) if they are real, sorry I didn't know. I also do not own the name Scrabble (although I do have the game), I believe Milton Bradley does (the board game company not the baseball player, duh, lol) and I do not own the "Academy" for obvious reasons. I don't own Times Square either and I'm not sure who does. 


	15. Midterm Madness

Disclaimer: I do not own Even Stevens. The Walt Disney Co. does. I only own the idea for this story.

A/N: Hello all. And yes, I'm finally back. Sorry it's been so long between updates. I've been reading the Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot. They are so great. I think everyone should read them. The movie was good, but Disney didn't do the books justice. They are WAY different. And then I went on vacation. To where? I hear you all asking. Disney World, of course. We got home just in time for that trouble maker named Charley to mess things up down there. Anyway, enough of my ranting. Thanks for the reviews. And welcome newbies. I'm glad everyone's enjoying my story so far. Here's chapter 15 of Ren's Perfect Mistake. And remember be the priceless gems you all are and review.

Ren's Perfect Mistake

Chapter 15: Midterm Madness

Winter break had been over for two weeks now and Ren was suffering from pregnancy induced insomnia. She could no longer sleep on her stomach, as it was not flat anymore, and she'd tried every other way she could think of; nothing seemed to work. And not only that, but Ren's grades were starting to "suffer" too, due to her lack of a good night's sleep for the past eight nights straight. Although, her grades weren't suffering too terribly because she still had straight A's; they just weren't as high in the percentages as they normally were.

Just like the eight days before (the insomnia had started the previous Sunday and it was now Monday) Ren was up before the crack of dawn and flipping through the channels on the living room television, the sound nearly on mute. 'At least there's no school today,' Ren thought, due to it being Martin Luther King Jr. Day. She still had a lot that needed to get finished before Ruby came over later to study for midterms, as they were this week.

Ren didn't have to worry about taking any midterms because the school had a double A policy. The double A rule basically states that if you get an A in a class the first quarter of a semester and an A in the same class the second quarter of that semester, then you don't have to take the midterm in that class (this rule also counts for final exams). This policy also meant that she didn't have to go to school this week; at all. Not to mention it only applies to juniors and seniors, so she had offered to help Louis and his friends study too.

Ren yawned. She was so tired, but she couldn't get to sleep. And there was nothing on TV that early in the morning, at least nothing interesting. She yawned again and turned the television off. This was going to be a long day.

Determined to get some sleep, Ren fluffed up the pillow she had brought down from her room and laid down on the couch and closed her eyes. She dozed off, but not soundly. She woke up not even twenty minutes later when her mother came down to start breakfast.

Ren sat up on the couch, startling Eileen.

"What are you doing up so early, Honey?" Eileen asked coming into the living room and sitting on the couch next to her five and a half month pregnant daughter.

"I couldn't sleep," Ren sighed, obviously exhausted.

"Again? That's the sixth or seventh time this week."

"Actually, it's the eighth time, Mom," Ren corrected leaning against her mom.

"What time did you get up this morning?" Eileen inquired.

"I don't know," Ren replied honestly, "sometime around four."

"Four a.m.? You poor thing! You know what I'm going to do, I'm going to make you a nice big glass of warm milk and then I want you to go back to your room and try to get some sleep." Ren smiled a little and sat up. Her mother got up from where she'd been sitting on the couch and went into the kitchen. Ren tried to relax while her mom was heating up the drink.

Eileen came back a few moments later with the warm drink in a coffee mug and handed it over to her daughter. "Careful, it might be a little hot," she warned. Ren took a sip from the mug. It was hot, but not scolding. "Is anything bothering you, Ren," Eileen asked. Ren set the mug down on the coffee table.

"No," Ren said shaking her head. "Why?"

"I just thought that maybe your insomnia could be from all the stress that you've been dealing with lately. What with nearly getting a B in Algebra and hiding your pregnancy and all."

"It's not that, Mom. Well, it could have been the grade thing last week, but I haven't had any problems with hiding my pregnancy. Since we've been back to school I haven't been startled by any random kicks or punches," she told her mom, then picked up her mug of warm milk and took another sip.

"Alright, Honey. But if this goes on any longer I want you to go talk to Dr. Roscoe about it. Okay?"

"Okay, Mom," Ren sighed. 'At least midterms mean that I'm half way through my pregnancy as well as the school year,' she thought. She had finished her warm milk and set the empty mug on the table. She then grabbed her pillow and went back to her room where she promptly fell asleep.

It was quarter till noon when Ren finally woke up. The warm milk had helped. A lot. She felt very refreshed. It was the most she'd gotten to sleep in a single setting for over a week. Now she knew what to do if she ever had trouble sleeping again.

Once she was finished dressing in a pair of sweatpants and a school sweatshirt, Ren went downstairs to get lunch and to get ready for her study/tutoring session with her friends and brother. Louis helped out a little bit then went to call his friends to see if they were ready to come over as Ren already was. And Ruby called about fifteen minutes after that to say that she would be a little late because she had to run a couple errands for her mother, Babs, who had been sick all week with the flu. Bobby, who had offered to help too since he didn't need to study for any tests, had to cancel at the last minute because both of his parents had suddenly come down with the flu too.

Ren prayed that her parents wouldn't come down with the flu as well. Especially since they had gone away for the day (as she had discovered in a note on the refrigerator door that afternoon), though she'd been given the heads-up the night before that they might do something.

Tawny arrived first. She was always early, and she brought her jar of jellybeans to use as rewards for answering questions right. Jellybeans were her favorite teaching tool.

The second person to arrive at the Stevens' house was totally unexpected, at least to Ren. Louis had obviously invited him too, but Tom Gribalski, since he'd gotten the job at the drug store hadn't been hanging around with Louis, or anyone else for that matter, because the job was eating up all of his free time. Ren hadn't even said hello to him in months.

"Hello, Ren! How are you, milady?" Tom greeted ever cheerfully.

"Hi, Tom," Ren said a little confused. "I'm fine, but what are you doing here? Don't you have to work?"

"Alas no," Tom replied. He hadn't changed one bit. He still talked like he belonged in a Shakespearean play. "It was getting to be too much for me with school and everything, so I quit right after Christmas."

"Oh," Ren replied. Her cheeks flushed when she noticed Tom was still standing outside and immediately invited him in.

"Why, thank you, Ren. I thought you'd never ask," he told her jokingly in reply to her invitation. Ren smiled. She'd always enjoyed hanging out with Tom before even though he could get a little exasperating at times. She was about to close the door when Twitty came running up the driveway.

"Am I late?" he asked, out of breath. He had run all the way from his house, which was at least seven blocks away.

"No," Ren said herding him through the door so she could close it, "we're still waiting for Ruby to get here."

"Good," he said pulling out a bag of something from the inside pocket of his jacket. It was a bag of, what else, jellybeans. He handed it to Ren.

"Thanks," she said, arching an eyebrow. "Why don't we go into the living room?" Ren suggested, leading the way. Tom and Twitty followed Ren and sat down on the couch next to Louis. Tawny was sitting in the armchair which left the high-heel shoe chair free for Ren.

Before sitting down, Ren set the bag of jellybeans that Twitty had brought on the coffee table. But before she could actually seat herself, Louis stopped her.

"What's wrong with _this_ chair?" Ren asked pointing at the uniquely shaped chair.

"Well, it's just that it's very low and hard to stand up from. And well, I just thought that...that it would be... Well, that can't be good for your back. So I want you to take my seat on the couch," Louis told his sister getting up from his seat.

Ren smiled warmly at her younger brother's thoughtfulness. These past couple months he'd seemed so nervous around her though, which made her nervous around him. 'And come to think of it,' Ren thought, 'we haven't really fought in a long time. Nothing big anyway.' She sighed heavily as she carefully lowered herself to her new seat on the couch next to Tom, who, as Ren thought about it, still didn't know that she was pregnant as they hadn't seen each other in months.

Tom didn't seem to notice Ren's tenderness in sitting down. Nor did he notice that her stomach was larger and rounder (though wearing a sweat suit helped conceal this, a little). He only sat there on her couch patiently waiting to begin the study group. At least that's what it seemed to her. And when Ruby called to say that she'd be even later and to start without her, Louis insisted that he get the phone for Ren. Tom never even questioned his actions.

It was only after Ren had begun the study session on the subject of biology that the group's discussion had drifted, though not so far from the topic as the topic was reproduction, to Ren's pregnancy. Had Tom anything in his mouth, there would surely have been a spit take.

"Ren Stevens is pregnant?" is all Tom could manage to say. Ren nodded sheepishly, though she was not in the least bit ashamed of her current state.

Tawny hung her head in shame. She hadn't meant to blab Ren's secret like that. She had forgotten that Tom didn't know, yet. "I am so, so sorry, Ren," Tawny began. "It seemed like an opportune time to ask about names and I forgot that Tom didn't know," she babbled. "Oh gosh, Ren, I really am so sorry. Can you ever forgive me?" But to her surprise, Ren wasn't angry with her.

"Tawny," Ren said, startling her brother's girlfriend. "It's okay."

"Huh?" Tawny was confused.

"It's okay. Tom deserves to know if he's going to be hanging out with us again, though I'm surprised he hadn't noticed before."

"Thanks for not being mad at me," Tawny replied sincerely.

"You're welcome," Ren replied. She looked over at Tom; he seemed to be pondering still. Ren decided to interrupt his thoughts. "Tom. Tom!" Ren nearly shouted. He came to.

"Huh? Oh! Wow, Ren. That was some news that I'd never expected to hear about you. Not in a million years. But, actually, Ren, I was starting to become a little suspicious."

"You were?" Ren asked, startled.

"I didn't want to believe that it was you who had come into the store that night last September to purchase the home pregnancy test kit, but I had seen you walk in. And I saw you on the security camera screens in the back room," Tom said solemnly, "when you were trying to pick out the best one." Everyone in the room had grown quiet.

"What else do you know about my pregnancy, Tom?" Ren asked. She was really scared about how much he knew.

"I don't know that much about this. I only saw you buy the test. But I did notice that you and Bobby had been hanging out more. Well, I...I...I just assumed Bobby was the father. And everyone knows that you quit 'The Wallaby' before Christmas with some really vague excuse."

"That's all you know?" Ren asked, her suspicion of Tom dying a little.

"That's all I know. So, is Bobby Deaver the father of your baby?" Tom asked eagerly. Ren just nodded. Tom sat back quietly, satisfied.

"You...you, you didn't say anything to anyone, did you, Tom?" Ren stuttered. She had to know whether or not he'd said anything to anybody.

"Of course not, Ren! What do you think I am; a gossip?" Tom chuckled. "And don't worry. I've kept your secret this long..." But Ren interrupted before he could finish.

"Thank you, Tom. Thank you so much," Ren said giving Tom a great big hug.

"You're so very welcome, Ren," Tom replied, "but could I ask you one more question?"

"You can ask me anything. I promise I'll answer truthfully."

"Okay, so what names _did_ you pick out?"

Ren laughed a little, relieved that it wasn't some embarrassing question as Tom's been known to ask in the past. She gladly answered. "Well, if it's a boy, Bobby and I decided on the name Owen Murphy. And if the baby is a girl we've decided on the name Felicia Grace."

"Those are beautiful names, Ren," Tom said.

"They really are," Tawny added.

"Thanks you guys," Ren said warm-heartedly. "But could we get back to studying?" Everyone nodded in agreement. Even Tawny had been having problems in that Biology class. Ren suspected that it was the teacher who wasn't doing her job because even Louis had taken notes. Louis! And he was still having problems.

Once all of Ren's "tutees" had finished memorizing several different means of reproduction (sexual, asexual, and so on) and several different life-forms' reproductive systems, she began quizzing them using flash cards and blank copies of the diagrams. And much to everyone's surprise nobody, not even Louis, got a single question wrong. This whole process took less than an hour. They had learned more in a half hour with Ren than in half a week in class. So they started on the next area of discussion: photosynthesis which produced the same results.

Ruby called to say that she was on her way half way through the third area of discussion some two hours after the study session began. She arrived just in time to learn about microscopic organisms. When she came in, she sat down on the floor next to Ren and disregarding the study session, began ranting almost immediately.

"Ren, you are so lucky that your parents aren't sick. I hate it when my mom is sick. All she does is nag. 'Ruuuu-by, Ruby, Honey, can you bring me some chicken soup? Ruuuu-by, can you bring me some tea? Ruuuu-byyyyy! I need another blanket Ruby, I'm cold.' I could just pull out all of my hair. I can't wait for school tomorrow, Ren; peace and quiet at least part of the day. I just don't know how I'm going to pass Mr. Marky's midterm." When Ruby was finished ranting, she looked as though she was about to cry.

"Well, first of all," Ren started, "you need to chill. Secondly, that's what this study session is for. Tawny and I are both pretty good at math; she's taking the same class, remember?" Ruby nodded as she wiped a tear from her eye. "Good," Ren said, "now let's finish studying for this biology midterm, so we can take a break and then move on to the next topic."

After a fifteen minute break, which everyone well deserved as the study session was going extremely well, the boys went off in their own little study group while the girls studied for their Algebra exam. However, Ruby was still having problems understanding graphing and exponents after almost an hour of studying. She seemed to understand everything else though.

"It's no use, Ren," Ruby said, ready to give up on a graph she'd been working on. "I'm never going to get this. Never!" She threw her pencil down on the coffee table and began sobbing.

"If you want to, Rube," Ren said, putting her hand on her best friend's shoulder to try and comfort her, "we can take a break from Algebra and move on to something else. We'll come back to this later."

"Yeah, Ruby," Tawny joined in. "Why don't we move on to English? You're really good at that. And I could always use a little help brushing up on my grammar and writing terms." Ruby smiled at this. She was good at English. It was one of four midterms she didn't have to take.

"Alright," Ruby said, grinning. "Anything would be better than going over graphing again right now."

"So, it's settled then," Ren said, "we're going to move on to studying English." Ruby nodded, feeling much more content than she had when she'd arrived. Ren called the boys back into the living room to get back together in the large group and they studied English and then U.S. History/ Politics until dinner.

After dinner Tom, Twitty, and Louis left leaving Tawny, Ruby, and Ren to work on Ruby's Algebra again. And by the time Ruby left at eight thirty, she could answer every single graphing and exponent question, correctly. Tawny left soon after Ruby.

A week had passed since midterms and Ren was back in school after enjoying a whole week without having to be there. She was standing in front of her brother's locker, waiting for him to get out of detention, though she had no idea what he'd done to deserve one, at least not this time. Finally, at three fifteen he was there.

"Ready to go home, Lou?" Ren asked.

"Yeah, report cards today, right?" Louis inquired, excitedly.

"Yeah," Ren said raising an eyebrow. "Why are you so excited, or do you just want to get home before Mom gets there?" she teased.

"Well, come on. I wanna see what I got. My teachers wouldn't tell me shiitake mushrooms about my grades."

"Okay, calm down. Do you have everything?" Ren asked.

"Yeah, I don't have any homework. Finished it in study hall," Louis said, practically flying out of the school. He was so eager to get home; Ren wasn't sure whether it was a good thing or a bad thing.

Louis ran right to the mailbox as soon as he got out of Ren's car and began flipping through the mail until he found what he was searching for. "Eureka!" he shouted handing the pile of other mail over to Ren and practically shredding the small envelope containing his grades. He opened the folded piece of paper and began reading, a huge smile plastered on his face. "Alright! This is so great! Hey Ren, Ren, check this out," he told his sister handing the small piece of paper over to her. Ren read it over and smiled too.

"Alright, Lou! This is excellent. I knew you could do it!" Ren said throwing her arms around him. Louis was jumping up and down with excitement.

"I gotta go show this to Mom and Dad," he shouted running into the house. Ren smiled. For the first time in her baby brother's life he'd gotten no lower than a C on his report card. Ren had seen his grades. He had two A's, four B's, and only one C. And those were just his quarter grades, much improved over the previous quarter. As for his midterm grades, all A's except for phys ed., in which he had a C, and for Louis, this was excellent.

Ren found her report card in the pile of mail her brother had handed to her, opened it and sighed, "straight A's, as usual." She turned to go inside too and stopped when the baby kicked. "Yes, my little darling, Mommy got good grades again. And you know what else, Baby? Uncle Louis isn't as dumb as he looks," she giggled and patted her round belly lightly then once again started toward the house.

A/N 2: I really hope that everyone enjoyed this chapter. You all probably thought I'd forgotten 'bout y'all. But no, I haven't and I couldn't. I just want to say that I'm not at all sure when the next update will be, but never fear, it will come, just not as soon as we'd all like it to. Anyhow, keep reading and reviewing and keep smiling everybody. : )

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaawwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Jackets!!!" Tootles everyone!

PS: I would just like to end this chapter with a quote to think about though it has nothing to do with this chapter itself:

"Imagination is more important than knowledge."

-Albert Einstein


	16. Bon Bons, Kicks, and Valentine's Kisses

Disclaimer: Nope, don't own a thing; except the idea for this story. Everything else belongs to The Mouse (you know which mouse).

A/N: Allo, allo. It's me, Widow Shark, and I know it's been quite a while since the last chapter's been posted, so sorry 'bout that, but it couldn't be helped. I've started College (blah!) and I have a lot of homework, but it's mostly reading. This is just a warning that the next chapter may not be posted for quite a while longer since that school thing will probably still be in the way. Anyway, this chapter's a doosy (long that is). So be the gems you all are; read, review and enjoy Chapter 16 of Ren's Perfect Mistake. Tootles.

Ren's Perfect Mistake

Chapter 16: Bon Bons, Kicks, and Valentine's Kisses

If there was one thing that Ren absolutely hated about being pregnant (besides the fact she was only seventeen and still in high school) it was the whole weight-gaining thing. And gaining more weight. And gaining even more weight. Sure it was gradual and not too many people had really noticed anything, but she hated it more and more with every pound she'd put on.

And it seemed that she'd put on another five to seven pounds just overnight. Either that or the scale was broken. But of the latter, Ren didn't think so. She looked at herself sideways in the mirror. She looked slightly larger too. "It's a good thing maternity clothes stretch," she muttered. "But now I'm going to have to be wearier of people; especially Larry. Ugh!"

Ren stared at the scale in disbelief one last time before finally convincing herself that the longer she stared at it, the less likely that it would turn out to be a figure of her imagination. She went to her room and started getting ready for an evening out with Bobby; it was Valentine's Day after all. Walton High School was having their annual winter dance tonight too, but Ren and Bobby had opted to do their own thing instead of possibly getting "found out."

Bobby was taking her to a nice little Italian restaurant in downtown Sacramento called the Pantry de Parma. They had decided to go there because there would be less chance of running into somebody from school; at least less chance of running into somebody who was going to the dance that evening.

Ren finished putting her makeup on and went to ask her mother if she could borrow some jewelry. Eileen lent Ren the most beautiful pearl necklace and earrings which went wonderfully with her pink and black polka-dot wrap-around dress. And she was, of course, wearing the promise ring that Bobby gave her. Though now it seemed to be cutting off the circulation in her right hand.

When she was completely finished getting ready, Ren went downstairs to wait for Bobby. Louis, Tawny, Twitty, and Tom were all downstairs in their formal wear; they were going to the dance.

"Wow, Lou!" Ren exclaimed when she saw her brother. "No orange tux?"

"Ha ha!" Louis replied sarcastically. "I have matured." To this, Ren nodded. He was right; he had grown up a lot since he'd gotten into high school, or at least since he'd entered the tenth grade.

"Oh, Ren, I really like your dress," Tawny said adoringly. "You can't even tell that you're pregnant." Ren smiled wryly and turned to the side. Tawny blushed a little and corrected herself. "Well, at least you can't tell from the front." Ren smiled again and gave Tawny a sincere thanks as well as complementing her on her dress too. Tawny's dress was candy apple red with gold striping going diagonally across the body. She also had a red shawl to go over it.

The doorbell rang and Ren answered it. It was Bobby and he was wearing black pants and a black dress shirt with a pink (magenta) and red striped tie. Ren let him in and the group of teens talked for a short while before someone asked where Mr. Stevens went. Twitty said that he thought Mr. Stevens said something about getting a camera out. Tom said that he had heard Mr. Stevens say something about his camera as well. But the group shrugged it off and continued chatting to stall for time before everyone had to leave to go to dinner and the dance.

Louis's group had unanimously decided to go to Royal Burger for dinner just so they could get the paper crowns. Ren sighed when she heard this and second guessed her brother's acquired maturity. Then she and Bobby shared their plans for the evening, which were dinner and a movie.

Steve came into the living room a few minutes later with his afore-mentioned camera. "Okay, everybody, gather together. I want to take a couple pictures of you guys and gals. Smile and say 'Cupid'!" Everybody did as he asked and he snapped a bunch of pictures, leaving everyone in the room disoriented for a few moments.

By the time everybody had regained their eyesight and their footing, it was time to get going. Tom's mother, Doris, had agreed to take the group to dinner and the dance and she was waiting outside for the group in her minivan. Bobby was driving Ren and himself downtown. And Mr. and Mrs. Stevens were left alone for the evening.

Once everybody had said their 'see you laters' for the evening, Mr. and Mrs. Stevens sighed heavily and sank down on the couch.

"Are we really alone, Steve?" Eileen asked.

"I think so, Honey. Hold on for a sec. I'll be back."

"Wait, where are you going?" Eileen asked her husband, alarmed.

"Shh. Don't worry, I'll be back," he hushed.

"Alright," Eileen sighed again. She only had to wait a few seconds before Steve came back with a bouquet of red roses and a box of chocolates.

"These are for you, Miss," Steve said handing his wife the gifts he bought for her. "Sorry there's no card."

"Oh, Steve; these are beautiful, but I didn't get anything for you..." Steve put a finger on her lips.

"It's okay. I'd much rather spend time with you," he told her pulling her in for a hug. Eileen looked at the heart-shaped box of chocolates and read the name.

"Oh my, Steve! These are Divine Cacao Chocolates, the most expense...How did you get these? I've heard only the most glamorous stars could get these."

"I have a few connections. That's all...you need...to know," Steve told Eileen, lightly tapping her on the nose when he finished. Eileen leaned closer to her husband. It was good to be alone for once on Valentine's Day. The couple leaned back on the couch, closing their eyes and relaxing, just glad to be alone. Eileen then felt like something was hovering over her, so she opened her eyes for a split second and shrieked, startling Steve too.

"Beans! What are you doing here?" she asked reestablishing her composure. Steve was knocking his head on the coffee table over and over again. And she put a hand on her husband's shoulder to get him to stop hitting his head. But he didn't stop and she finally had to whisper to him, "Stop it, Honey, you'll get a concussion."

Beans shrugged. "I don't know; I'm just really bored. My mom and dad went out to a movie and left me alone with the crazy neighbor lady. She doesn't do anything but play checkers with herself. I asked to play a game with her and she told me to go away and not come back." Beans looked really upset. "So, I came over here looking for Louis, but I guess he's not home, so I'll go."

Eileen and Steve looked at each other, concerned. As much as they'd wanted to spend the night alone, they couldn't make Beans go back to his neighbor's house. So Steve called the Arenguren's house and left a message on their answering machine explaining why Bernard wasn't at the neighbor's. And then he called the neighbor to tell her where Beans went. She answered the phone and Steve talked with her, but she told him that she didn't care what happened to the "little brat" because he wouldn't leave her alone so she could play her game of checkers. She needed it quiet so she wouldn't "lose her concentration." Because she'd never lost a game, and wasn't "about to start now."

So, it was settled. Mr. and Mrs. Stevens told Beans he could stay there and they'd play some board games with him and get him dinner. Beans was so happy that he hugged them both. He then noticed the heart-shaped box of Divine Cacao chocolates that Steve had given to his wife for Valentine's Day.

"Hey, Mrs. Stevens, those are some pretty fancy chocolates you got there! The cherry filled ones are the best," Beans said. Both Mr. and Mrs. Stevens looked confused.

"You've eaten Divine Cacao chocolates before?" Mr. Stevens asked.

"Yeah, why do you want to know?" Beans asked.

"I was...just wondering how you got your hands on them. They're almost impossible to get." Beans just sat there and smiling and nodding his head.

"I've got... connections," he replied casually, still smiling and nodding. Mr. and Mrs. Stevens just rolled their eyes and sighed.

At the Royal Burger...

Louis, Tawny, Twitty, and Tom were all sitting in a booth finishing up their meals and chatting happily. They had gotten many stares from other customers as they were the only ones there in formal wear and corny-looking paper crowns. However, they ignored it and continued doing their own things until Doris returned to drive them to the dance.

By the time everyone had swallowed their last French fry or their last sip of pop, they were all in the middle of a heated (and uneven) discussion regarding the 1969 Moon landing. Tom was the odd man out.

"I'm telling you," Tom began for the tenth or so time, "the 1969 Moon landing was one-hundred and ten percent real. There's no way they could have made it up."

"Sure there is," Tawny retorted. "The whole Moon landing thing could very easily have been filmed in a studio."

"Explain, please," Tom ordered.

"Okay, you want me to explain. Fine, I'll explain," Tawny said, sounding angry, but not shouting. "You know how Neil Armstrong is supposedly the first person who set foot on the moon?"

"Yeah, cause he is."

"Okay, Tom. If that's true, who set the camera up to film him being the first person stepping off the space ship and onto the moon? Tell me, how'd they film it?"

This left Tom completely stumped. "Um...uh...I....They...Oh that was a trick question. Next topic, you win!"

"That's my girl," Louis said giving his girlfriend a hug. Twitty offered a double high-five.

"What's the next topic, Lou?" Twitty asked.

"How about Jeff Corwin versus Steve Irwin?" Louis suggested.

"We did that one a few weeks ago, remember Louis? Steve Irwin won."

Louis nodded. "Oh, yeah, I remember now. Why don't you pick, Twitty?"

"Alright! I know, The Wolfman versus the Creature from the Black Lagoon."

"You guys are so boring," Tawny whined. "Why don't we debate something like, I don't know, say Pirates versus Ninjas or something. They have virtually nothing in common."

"You know what, Lou? I like that idea," Twitty commented.

"Yeah, me too. Pirates versus Ninjas it is. And all I have to say to that is Ninjas rule and Pirates drool!"

"Oh yeah, Louis, you really think so?" Tawny said grabbing Louis by the hand and twisting his fingers. Louis wanted to scream out in pain, but instead he bit down on his lip. Twitty then decided to add his two cents worth, agreeing with Louis that Ninjas were better than Pirates because they wore cooler clothes. This resulted in excruciating pain for Twitty as well.

Tom took Tawny's side for once saying that Pirates were "more realistic than Ninjas and that you still hear about Pirates in the news." Tawny still had her death grip on Louis and Twitty's hands though. She had no intention of letting them go until they screamed for mercy, but she had to give up early because Doris had arrived to take them to the dance.

"This is only the beginning," she whispered her friends. "Next time you won't be so lucky," she teased.

The group then got up from the table and threw their trash from dinner away and piled into Mrs. Gribalski's minivan, finally on their way to the winter dance.

At the Pantry de Parma...

Ren yawned then laid her head back on Bobby's shoulder. They had arrived at the restaurant at precisely six forty-five and it was already quarter after seven. They'd been waiting for a table for a half an hour when they'd been told only ten minutes. Bobby had already gotten up, twice, to ask what was taking so long and the maitre d only said, "It's Valentine's Day." So, Bobby just sat down next to Ren and waited for the beeper to light up.

Another ten minutes had passed before the beeper finally went off so the two could be seated.

"Finally," Bobby mumbled. "I didn't think we'd ever get to eat tonight."

"Neither did I," Ren replied. The waiter led them to a corner booth in the back of the restaurant then left to get the menus and silverware.

Ren sat down first, putting her hand on her belly; the baby was particularly active this evening. It wouldn't stop kicking. Bobby felt too and smiled, sliding in next to his girlfriend then giving her a small peck on the cheek.

The waiter came back a couple minutes later with the menus and silverware and apologized for the long wait. The teens told him not to worry about it because it was busy and they understood.

They looked at their menus, and after only a few minutes, decided that they both wanted the fettuccini Alfredo for dinner. The waiter came back to take their orders soon after and told the two it wouldn't be long for it to be done. So, while waiting for their food to come out, Ren and Bobby quietly talked about the future.

"Things are really going to be different in a couple of months, huh, Ren?" Bobby asked. Ren sighed.

"They sure are. But you know what? I'm ready to embrace it; with an open heart and an open mind." The baby had been quiet for a while, but now it was starting to kick again. It just wouldn't stop. Ren put her hands on her stomach again. "This is so weird," she commented.

"What's weird?" Bobby asked.

"Being pregnant; I never once thought that I'd be having a baby before I was married, let alone before I was out of high school. And for some reason, he or she has been really active today."

"Maybe he or she can feel the excitement of today?" Bobby offered.

"Perhaps," Ren stated. "But, maybe it's because you're here. We haven't really seen each other lately between school and all."

"True. I guess we'll just have to find more time. Or make more time?"

"There are only twenty-four hours in a day, Bobby Deaver, so it's quite impossible to make more time," Ren said.

"I was being hypothetical," Bobby said dryly. "I just meant that we have to make better use of our time management skills."

"I know, I was just playing with you," Ren said looking down at her belly then back up at Bobby. "We have a lot to figure out, you know? And we have to find time to go to those parenting classes Dr. Roscoe recommended to us."

"We have plenty of time, Ren," Bobby reassured her, placing a hand on her stomach. "You weren't kidding when you said the baby was really active tonight! I bet it's a boy."

"Oh really, cause you shouldn't make bets unless it's a sure thing. And it could be a girl," Ren retorted, laughing.

"We could find out," Bobby suggested.

"But we won't," Ren replied, lightly pinching Bobby on the cheek. She was still standing firm on the grounds that she wanted the baby's gender to be a surprise.

Bobby sighed, "It's not worth arguing over. Look, here comes the food!"

Ren looked up when he said that the food had arrived. And she was glad to hear it. "Good," she said, "I'm starving." No sooner had the plate been set in front of her, then she began eating. It was a pretty healthy portion too.

At the Winter Dance...

Louis, Tawny, Twitty, and Tom were all standing in a small corner at the back of the transformed cafeteria. They had been at the dance for a little more than a half an hour and were already completely miserable; especially Tawny who had been hoping for a little more than listening to hip hop and watching people break dancing all evening.

"This is SO boring!" Tawny whined, bringing her shawl over her arms as there was a chill breeze coming through the open windows. "Doesn't anybody listen to decent music anymore?"

"No," Twitty mumbled, leaning against a wall. Nobody seemed to have heard him.

"You're right, Tawn, but we're stuck here until eleven o'clock," Louis said.

"I have my cell phone," Tom offered. "I could call Doris to come back and pick us up."

"That's okay, Tom," Tawny replied. "Somehow we'll survive. I'm for sure not about to waste ten dollars." She sighed heavily and, ignoring the cold, lifted herself up onto the window sill. Louis was leaning on the sill next to her, but all of a sudden his face seemed to light up as if he had an idea.

"Wait right here. I'll be right back," Louis told his girlfriend.

"What? Where are you go...?" Tawny started. Louis had cut her off.

"Just wait here. I'll be right back," Louis repeated, then headed off in the direction of the DJ.

Twitty, seemingly aware of some action taking place, snapped out of his zombie-like state. "Where's Lou going?"

"Beats me," Tawny sighed, "but he told me to wait here." The music suddenly changed from something that sounded like screaming to something from another world entirely. Finally something everybody could enjoy—Polka music! No doubt Louis was behind the request.

"Alright!" Tom exclaimed. "I love the 'Hokey Pokey.'" He began dancing. And so did Twitty and about a hundred other groups of people who were fed up with rap music.

Tawny smiled and hopped down from the window sill to dance with Tom and Twitty. Louis came back a few moments later joining in immediately.

"Do you approve?" Louis asked, grinning widely. "I hear the 'Chicken Dance' is next."

"Yeah, I do. Thank you so much, Louis. You're my hero!" Tawny giggled, hugging Louis and then clasping onto his elbow to spin.

Back at the Pantry de Parma...

Ren and Bobby were finishing up their large dinners and talking about which movie they were going to see. They debated for at least twenty minutes over two movies when Ren finally decided she'd had enough and brought out a coin. Bobby won the toss.

"'Miracle' starring Kurt Russell it is then!" Bobby said smiling broadly. Ren sighed.

"Hockey, how romantic? Ugh!" Ren stuck her tongue out at Bobby. 'Men and sports. Oh well,' she thought.

"Are you ready?" Bobby asked.

"Yeah, do you know what time the movie starts?"

"Um... eight forty-five, I think."

"Alright, let's go," Ren said.

So, it was settled. The two teens would be seeing the eight forty-five showing of 'Miracle' the movie about the 1980 U.S. Olympic Hockey Team's victory over the U.S.S.R. After Bobby paid for dinner that evening, the teens were on their way to the theater, which just happened to be across the street from Panty de Parma.

It took only a couple of minutes to drive across the street, but finding a parking spot was proving to be like a game of 'I Spy.' Once they found a spot, that was about a football field and a half from the entrance, and got inside to buy the tickets, it was already eight forty. They had five minutes to get their tickets and find a seat. And the lines were out the door.

"Bobby," Ren said, grabbing his attention. "Bobby, it's already twenty till. The lines are atrocious and the movie's going to start in five minutes. We'll never get in there in time; much less find two seats that are next to each other." Bobby looked around. Ren was right; there'd be no getting in there that evening. He sighed heavily and nodded.

"Alright, I have a better idea. My parents are in New York City this weekend visiting Joyce Lynn and Gary, my older sister and little brother..."

"I remember them," Ren commented. "How are they doing?"

"They're doing great. In fact the show they're in is going to start traveling soon. But anyway, the house is free and we could rent a movie and watch it on the big screen in the basement," Bobby suggested. Ren thought about this for a second.

"Alright, but I get to pick the movie. We can go see 'Miracle' together another time."

"Deal," Bobby said, holding out his hand. Ren grabbed it and "sealed the deal" so to speak. Then they got back into Bobby's car and drove to the Movie World located just around the block from Bobby's house.

At Movie World...

It wasn't long before Ren found the movie she wanted to rent. She held it up for Bobby to see.

"That? Are you sure you want to rent THAT?!" Bobby asked her alarmed. Ren nodded.

"What? Don't you like this movie?" Ren asked.

"Yeah, but...YOU? I didn't think you watched those kinds of movies." Ren smiled. Bobby seemed nervous, but he was probably more surprised than anything else.

"It's a musical, Bobby," Ren said noncommittally.

"I know that, but Ren! You just don't seem like the kind of girl who'd watch something like THAT!"

"Surprise! I am."

"You seem like the kind of girl who'd be more interested in musicals like 'CATS' and 'Phantom of the Opera,'" he stated.

"Oh Bobby, don't tell me you don't like the song 'Sweet Transvestite'?"

"The music's great, but 'The Rocky Horror Picture Show?'"

"My mom got me hooked when I was like fourteen and a half. It's a Halloween tradition, but we didn't get to watch it this past year because of my mom's campaign among other things."

"'Rocky Horror' it is then," Bobby sighed. He then started digging in his pocket for something; he pulled out his car keys then handed them to Ren. She arched her eyebrows in confusion.

"What are you giving me these for?" she asked.

"I just wanted you to go outside and warm up the car while I pay for this. It is kind of chilly out there tonight," Bobby explained. He was right.

"Alright," Ren told him, giving him a peck on the cheek. "Don't be long."

"I won't," Bobby told her, giving her a kiss too. Ren then went outside to start the car. Little did she know that Bobby had other things on his mind.

When Bobby saw that the coast was clear he grabbed a couple different bags of movie theater candy and a bag of movie theater style popcorn to go with the rental. Since they didn't get to go to the theater, he'd bring the theater to them; lighting and all. He paid for the rental and the food and was on his way back to his car, where Ren was waiting for him.

"That was quick," she commented when he sat down in the driver's seat.

"There wasn't any line," he said. "You ready to go to my place and watch Tim Curry run around in fishnets?"

"Sure am," Ren said giggling. The baby kicked as if in agreement and Ren put her hand on her belly. "Looks like our little one already likes 'RHPS.'"

"Yeah?" Bobby asked.

"Yeah, now let's go. Time's a wastin'."

Bobby then put his foot on the gas and they were on their way to go watch the movie.

Back at the Winter Dance...

The next two hours of the dance seemed to pass by quickly as many people, who had previously been too shy, began to request songs that the majority of the room could enjoy, including Louis's group. The entire atmosphere of the dance had changed after the polkas. Everyone was just... happier. A lot of people that Louis didn't even know came up to him to thank him for making the night a lot more enjoyable. This made Louis feel proud of himself. And the feeling could have lasted all night, except that when the lights went up and the music stopped so the king and queen of the dance could be announced, Larry Beale approached him.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't the little bro of my arch foe," Larry said smugly to Louis.

"What do you want, Larry?" Louis asked angrily, but keeping his voice down. He didn't want to disturb the crowning ceremony. His friends moved in closer to him to try and scare Larry off. But it didn't work.

"Oh, look at this. Your little friends are all coming to help you." Larry then pretended to look around. "What, no Ren?" he asked.

"Why don't you just back off, Larry? I don't want any trouble," Louis told him, still keeping his voice level.

"Just tell me where Ren is. I know she's not here," Larry grinned wickedly.

"Why do you want to know, huh, Larry? What do you care where my sister is?"

"It's just that she's Ren Stevens. She never misses a school function, especially not a dance. Now where is she?" Larry asked. He seemed to become angrier every moment. It was threatening.

"Not here obviously," Louis said angrily under his breath. He was on the verge of starting a fistfight. Tom and Twitty snuck off to the student activity center to get sherbet punch. Tawny stayed behind to keep Louis out of trouble.

"Whoa! Tough guy. I just want to know where she is. That's all and then I'll leave you alone." Louis clenched his fists.

Tawny, upset by the confrontation, grabbed Louis's arm and whispered in his ear, "He's not worth it, Lou. Come on," she said, pulling him towards the student activity center. Louis pulled away and got into Larry's face.

"She went out on a date. Happy now? Now just leave us alone!" Louis told him in a harsh whisper.

"Fine, I'll leave you all alone, but I know that's why she isn't here. There's more to it. I know that much," Larry told Louis.

"Well, you'll never find out from me!" Louis said through gritted teeth. Tawny took hold of her boyfriend's arm again and started pulling him towards the student activity center once again. Louis pushed his hair back with his free hand and sighed.

"You all right, Louis?" Tawny asked.

"Huh? Oh, yeah. I'm fine. It's just..."

"I know, Lou. I know. And you shouldn't let him get to you like that," Tawny told him leaning her head on his shoulder as they walked. Louis kissed her gently on the forehead.

"Yeah, I know. I just wish...I just wish that he wasn't so suspicious all the time."

"Everything's going to be okay, Lou. Now let's go find Twitty and Tom. They sort of abandoned us back there," she laughed. Louis chuckled too. He felt a lot better than he had a few minutes before hand.

"I think they went to the student activity center," Louis said. By now the young couple was walking hand in hand toward the student hangout. And once they rounded the corner they could clearly see Twitty and Tom sitting at a table with a couple of girls and sipping punch. Louis opened the door for Tawny. "Ladies first," he said bowing.

Back at the Stevens' house...

It was already after ten o'clock, and after hours of playing games, Beans was passed out on the Stevens' couch. Eileen and Steve were sitting on the floor next to each other. They were exhausted, but the child was finally asleep. And even better, his parents had called only a few minutes before to say they were coming to pick him up. Despite being exhausted, the couple thought it was one of the best Valentine's Days ever.

The doorbell rang and Steve slowly got up to answer it. It was the Arengurens. "Hello," Steve said upon opening the door. "Come on in. He just fell asleep on the couch."

"Oh, my little darling," Mrs. Arenguren sighed. "I hope he wasn't too much trouble, Mr. Stevens."

"No trouble at all," Steve said smiling.

"How much do we owe you and your wife for watching him?" Mr. Arenguren asked.

"Don't worry about it," Eileen said, getting up from her spot on the floor. "It was our pleasure, really."

"Thank you so much, once again," Mrs. Arenguren said, her eyes meeting those of Mrs. Stevens. "I really appreciate it."

Mr. Arenguren went over to the couch and lifted the sleeping Beans up. He never even stirred. "Well, goodnight Mr. and Mrs. Stevens," Mr. Arenguren said, shifting Beans in his arms so he wouldn't drop him. After all he was no small kid. "I hope he didn't ruin your evening."

"Not at all," Steve said, smiling warmly. "Now you guys have a safe trip home. Bye-bye."

"Bye," Mrs. Arenguren waved. Mr. and Mrs. Stevens waved back.

"Is he gone? Are we alone?" Steve asked.

"I think so, but are we ever REALLY alone?" Eileen teased, while throwing her arms over her husband's shoulders and giving him a passionate kiss on the lips. One of the Stevens' many clocks chimed to announce that it was quarter till eleven. Steve looked up.

"We don't have much time. Louis will be coming back from the dance soon. And Ren hasn't even call..." Steve stopped when the phone rang.

"Speak of the devil?" Eileen asked. Steve answered the phone. It was Ren, Steve nodded.

"Uh huh, Ren? Okay, that's nice. You can tell us all about your date when you get home. Okay. Bye-bye." Steve hung up the phone. "Well, Ren's on her way home now. As far as I can tell she had a great time."

"That's good," Eileen sighed. Steve sat down on the couch and Eileen sat down next to him, leaning her head on his shoulder. "It was a good night anyway."

"Yeah..." Steve said, drifting off to sleep. Eileen elbowed him and he woke up. "Huh, wha...? Did I fall asleep?"

"Uh huh," Eileen replied noncommittally. A car pulled into the driveway.

Outside...

Bobby got out of the car and helped Ren out. Then he walked her to the door. "I hope you had a good night," Bobby said. Ren giggled.

"I had a wonderful night, Bobby. No movie theater in the country would have been nicer than your homemade one. It was sweet," she told him. Bobby put his arms around her and gave her a long kiss on the lips. The baby kicked and both Ren and Bobby laughed. "I'll see you in school Monday," she said, giving her boyfriend another kiss. Ren then opened the door and went inside. Bobby went the other direction, got into his car, and was on his way.

The Dean home...

Doris Gribalski pulled into the Deans' driveway to let Tawny out. Louis volunteered to walk her to the door. She said he didn't have to, but he insisted.

"Some night, tonight, huh?" Louis asked once they reached the porch.

"Yeah, but it was fun," Tawny answered. "It would have been better if Larry hadn't tried to start any trouble, but it was fun."

"I'm glad you were there tonight. You kept me out of trouble yet again. Thanks," Louis said, giving Tawny a kiss on the cheek. "I'll see you tomorrow, 'kay?"

"Yeah, tomorrow. Bye," Tawny said, opening the door to go inside. Louis started back toward the minivan, but Tawny stopped him. "Oh, Louis, just one more thing." Louis turned around.

"And what's that?" he asked. Tawny smiled wryly.

"Pirates rule and Ninjas drool!" Louis grinned widely, but didn't start anything. He nodded and got into the car to go home. Tom and Twitty asked him what she told him.

All Louis said though was, "She loves me." He smiled the whole way home.

A/N 2: Okay everybody, what did you think? Well, you can tell me by sending me a review. Just a few things that I must point out, because while I did make up some names, I also used a few real ones, or just different versions of real names. You may have figured out that Royal Burger is Burger King and Movie World is something like Blockbuster. The names I truly made up though (or at least I think I did) were Pantry de Parma and Divine Cacao Chocolates. I also did a little name dropping with movie and song names. If you recognize it, I don't own it. And in the show, Bobby does have two siblings; I found that out after I wrote the first ten chapters or so, so I made them live in New York as young Broadway stars. I don't know what their real names are either, I just made them up. Kay? Tootles, and don't forget to review.

Quote of the Chapter: (Being a college freshman I think this is hilarious.)

"The best way to haze freshmen is to make them study." –Anon.

(You don't know how true this is. Tootles again.)

A/N 3: Also, there are a few inside jokes in here. My daddy does not recognize the word pink when it's referred to his clothing, but he will recognize the word magenta. Thus it is in parenthesis. Also the whole thing about the moon landing, ask a number of people from my high school, they will tell you one thing—"it didn't happen!" And as for the Pirates vs. Ninjas thing; everyone knows that Pirates Rule and Ninjas Drool! Thank you.


	17. How the Wind Does Blow

Disclaimer: Don't own anything but the storyline.

Thanks so much for the reviews everybody. They are all that keeps me going on this story (that and the strong desire to actually finish something I've started). Welcome Tonyboy!

A/N: Yeah, that school thing's still in the way, but it's getting better. I had a million essays to write so that's why this story hasn't been updated in a while. I really hope you enjoy this chapter. Be the gems I know you are, read and review!

By the way, if you celebrate Halloween; I hope you have a very happy and/or spooky one!

Ren's Perfect Mistake

Chapter 17: How the Wind Does Blow

'Seven months down, and only two to go,' Ren thought while driving to school. March was nearly over and the weather had been pretty decent so far. It was the perfect kite flying weather. She then wondered if there'd ever be such a nice day so she could take her son or daughter out kite flying. She decided that there probably would and kept driving until she reached the parking lot of Walton High School.

The parking lot was fairly empty as it was pretty early in the morning yet. It was only seven-fifteen. In fact, the only other cars belonged to the teachers and other faculty members of the school. Another car pulled in soon after Ren got out of her car. And that car belonged to none other than Larry Beale.

"Wonderful," Ren moaned. She started walking as briskly as she could toward the entrance of the school. Larry pulled in next to Ren's car and got out quickly to catch up with her. Ren would have been safe inside the school and away from Larry, but she had dropped a couple pencils and some folders causing papers to fly everywhere and she had to pick them up. She squinted her eyes. "Crap!" she muttered, trying to figure out how to bend over and pick them up without hurting her back or falling over. How she wished she was still allowed to carry her backpack. She paused in mid-squat when she heard her name.

"Stevens!" Larry shouted. "Aren't you going to pick those up? Cause, you should. It's littering if you don't," he told her smugly.

"Don't you think I know that, Larry?" Ren snapped, continuing to lower herself slowly to her knees so she could reach her belongings. She was finally able to grab a hold of her pencils and a few worksheets after a couple of seconds of scooting around and reaching. Larry just stood back watching and laughing. Ren grumbled under her breath at him. 'How dare him?' she thought. Then she realized that he, as well as the majority of the school, didn't yet know she was pregnant. And hiding it was getting harder as the temperature rose and her belly got bigger.

In the winter, she'd been able to hide it with sweats and baggy clothing. Not to mention she'd been much smaller in the previous months. Ren grumbled about the weight-gaining thing. She hadn't even noticed that Larry had stopped laughing and started helping her pick her papers up.

"Here, Stevens," Larry said, briskly handing Ren what was left of her papers and going inside.

"Thanks," Ren mumbled. She looked around. Nobody else was about. Ren tried standing up, but had trouble, so she scooted herself over to the wall and used that as an anchor to lift herself off the ground. 'That was weird,' Ren thought before going inside the school herself.

Ren rounded the corner and went into the main office where Principal Wexler was waiting. She apologized for being late and explained what happened before making Principal Wexler's coffee like she'd done every morning she'd been his student assistant.

When Ren was finished with her morning office duties (getting Principal Wexler's mail, making sure his bills were paid, and telling Mother Wexler some lame excuse why her son couldn't come over for dinner that night among other things) she went to her first period English class. Ruby was waiting for her outside the door like she always did.

"Hey, Ren," Ruby greeted her friend.

"Hey, Rube," Ren said. "You ready for the quiz today?"

"I think so, but I have one question," Ruby said.

"Ask away," Ren replied.

"Onomatopoeia, what is it?" Ruby asked.

"Uh, let me think. Um...I know! It's a word that imitates what it means. Like uh, clap or buzz."

"Right. Thanks, Ren."

"You know, the weirdest thing happened this morning and it's really freaking me out."

"What happened?" Ruby asked.

"Well, I dropped my papers and a couple of pencils outside today," Ren began, "and when I tried to pick them up Larry started laughing at me..."

Ruby interrupted, "What's weird about that?"

"Just listen. It was weird because all of a sudden he stopped laughing and started helping me pick up my papers. Then he just went inside like nothing happened."

"You're right, Ren. That is freaky."

"Do you think he knows?" Ren whispered.

"I don't know, but I heard a couple girls in the bathroom this morning talking about you gaining weight."

"Do you think they know?" Ren asked.

"I don't think they're suspicious about anything, but I think more people are starting to notice that you've put on a few pounds, especially in your face."

"Is it that swollen?" Ren asked, a little terrified that people might start catching on.

"Not today, but on Friday you looked like a balloon."

"Gee thanks, Rube," Ren said sarcastically. She sighed heavily and her mood completely changed. "Maybe I should just confess. It's not going to stay cooler for much longer and sweats aren't going to do it when it reaches seventy degrees."

"I wouldn't confess, Ren. Not yet."

"Stevens, Mendel. What's up?" It was Larry. "What aren't you going to confess yet?" he asked snidely.

"That's none of your beeswax, Beale. Now go, or you're gonna be late for class," Ruby said, physically pushing him a couple feet away. "Come on, Ren. Let's go. I need to go over my notes again," she told her friend as they walked into their classroom. Larry walked away, somewhat angrily.

"Thanks, Ruby, but I can fight my own battles," Ren told her, taking her seat in the back row with her friend.

"I know, but you shouldn't, at least not right now." Ren rolled her eyes. "Could you remind me what alliteration is?" Ren sighed and told her the answer. The bell rang a few minutes later and the teacher handed out the quizzes.

End of the day...

The day seemed to pass by exceptionally fast. And the best thing was none of Ren's teachers handed out any homework, so she could leave everything in her locker. Ren only had one more thing to do that day before she could go home, and that was turning in a story, or rather a letter, she had written for 'The Wallaby.' She took the neatly typed paper out of her locker and read it over, signing it 'Tina Mauthertubi.' It was her anonymous confession to the school that she was going to have a baby at seventeen.

It was actually Ruby's idea. Ren had told her at lunch how bad she just wanted to get her story out in the open, but didn't know how to do it exactly when Ruby came up with the brilliant idea.

So, after racing through lunch, Ren went down to the school's computer lab and typed it out. And to make the story seem credible, she typed out an envelope, sealed it and made it look like she'd ripped it open. The only address she put on it was her own. Her story to go with the letter was that it was a girl from another school who didn't know she had quit being the editor.

Ren smiled. She hoped it worked, but there was only one way to find out. She closed her locker, making sure it was locked, and began walking down to the newspaper office. The door was closed, but the lights were still on. She knocked on the door. Larry opened it a crack, just enough to see a face. She smiled broadly, but not smugly like he was.

"What do you want, Stevens?" he asked. "You don't work here any more."

"I know, but not everybody knows that."

"What are you talking about?"

"Some girl sent me a 'Jane Doe' letter. It explains everything inside. Here," Ren said, handing Larry the doctored letter in the ripped open envelope. "Just read it and you'll understand." Larry took the envelope out of her hands.

"Yeah, whatever," he grunted. He started to close the door, but opened it again to say, "Thanks." Ren walked away, smiling to herself.

Inside the newspaper office...

Larry quickly read the letter:

Dear Ren,

I am writing to you to tell you my story. I am a seventeen year old girl from Pasadena, CA and I am seven months pregnant. I would like you, as you are the editor of your school's newspaper, to publish this in your next edition.

My boyfriend and I made the biggest mistake of our lives after one of his parties. There was no drinking and no drugs. Just us. We didn't use protection. We are now expecting a baby sometime in May.

Luckily, my parents and his parents weren't angry with us. Just disappointed. I would have preferred them to be angry. They've supported our decision to keep the baby, though. And now, they're even a little bit excited to be grandparents. But I wouldn't expect all of your parents to react like ours. It's a sad truth, but a lot teen mothers end up on the street. And most of the time, teen fathers don't support their offspring. I suppose I'm just lucky.

I would like to urge everyone at your school to practice abstinence or at least safe sex so that no one has to go through what I'm going through now. It's really expensive and I can't do everything I could before. I used to be the editor of my school's newspaper too, but I had to give it up. I had to give up a lot, and there's a lot more I could still give up. I'm scared of what the future holds, and not just the stretch marks and labor pains.

I hope that any teenage girls or guys reading my letter will think before they do something they regret. How I wish I could go back in time.

Thanks a lot,

Tina Mauthertubi

Larry then reread the letter Ren handed to him to make sure that he didn't misinterpret what it said. 'Why would a pregnant girl write to Walton if she doesn't even go here?' he thought. Then it hit him, 'maybe Ren_ knows_ who it is?' He ran out of the office and down the empty halls to try and catch up with Ren.

Ren hadn't been in a great hurry to get out of the school. There was no need to rush, and she really hadn't expected Larry to run after her.

"Stevens!" Larry shouted, while running down the hall and waving the letter in his right hand. "Stevens, wait up." Ren turned around and stopped. Larry ran over to where she was standing and doubled-over out of breath.

"What do you want, Larry?" she asked. Larry finished catching his breath.

"Do you know who wrote this?" he asked, holding up the letter.

"Wasn't there a name on it?" Ren asked, grabbing the paper out of his hand. "Yeah, right here. 'Tina Mauthertubi.'"

"No, do you know who really wrote it?" Larry asked.

"What if I did, huh? I could tell you exactly who wrote that letter, but I'm not going to because maybe she wants a little bit of privacy."

"I'm not gonna publish her name. Why can't you just tell me?"

"Why can't you just leave this well enough alone?" Ren said starting to walk toward the door.

"Aw, come on Stevens." Larry grabbed Ren's arm and she stopped. "Just tell me and I'll leave you alone for the rest of the year." Ren was fuming by now.

"Is that a promise, Larry? Will you seriously leave me alone for the rest of the year if I tell you who really wrote that letter?"

"Yeah, promise," he told her, giving her the Boy Scout salute.

"I wrote the letter," Ren whispered.

"Yeah, right. Sure you did. Quit playin' with me," he laughed. "Now who really wrote that letter?"

"I did," Ren repeated angrily, grabbing Larry's hand and placing on the spot where, at the moment, the baby was kicking. He stopped laughing immediately.

"You weren't playin' with me?" he said, backing away from Ren. He had a very mixed reaction. "Well, that explains a lot...That was you, in the letter?"

"Every word except for the Pasadena part," she told him looking down at the floor. Larry was too stunned to speak. "Just promise you won't tell anyone. I'm not ready for the entire school to know yet."

"Promise," Larry said.

"You mean it?" Ren asked.

"I wouldn't have said it if I didn't," Larry replied solemnly. Ren started walking toward the door again, but paused to say 'thanks.' Larry spoke up again, "you know my real mother was only sixteen when she had me?' Ren stopped and looked up; Larry smiled warmly. "Yeah, I'm adopted. Colonel Beale and his wife adopted me when I was five months old. See, they couldn't have children of their own 'cause she had ovarian cancer. My father says it took a long time to adopt me because of it." Larry paused, thinking. "I don't really remember her that much. She, uh, died when I was only half-way through first grade, but she was a good mom."

"I never knew," Ren replied sympathetically.

"Never told anybody." He looked out the window. "It was about this time of year when she passed away," he sighed, then changed the subject. "So, Ren Stevens is going to be a mommy? Never thought I'd hear that before the ten year reunion."

"Me neither," Ren sighed. "Listen, I really have to be going home. It's late. Bye." Ren walked over to the door and pushed it open, but before she could go out Larry called her back.

"Uh, Stevens? Could you, uh, wait just a second?" Larry said.

"Yeah, Larry?" Ren paused.

"I'm not really ready for the entire school to know I'm adopted yet." Ren's eyes met Larry's with understanding.

"Your secret is safe with me," Ren said, smiling with sincerity. "Maybe...maybe we can talk tomorrow. See ya," she said, walking out the door.

"Yeah, see ya. Your secret's safe with me too," Larry said quietly, turning around to go back to the newspaper office. "Whoa!" he said to himself. He looked at the letter that Ren wrote, "I guess I owe it to Ren to print this."

At the Stevens house...

Ren had been thinking about what Larry had told her since she'd gotten in her car to drive home. She hadn't even noticed that Larry never said anything about his mother in the past. Let alone that his real mother was a teenager or that his foster mother died of cancer. She had always assumed that he had a mom and that his parents were probably just divorced like so many kids she knew. That also explained why, every year, for as long as she'd known him, he would miss a day in March. And now Larry Beale was keeping the knowledge Ren had been most afraid that he'd attain. But she trusted him, just as he trusted her with his secret. And she'd keep it for as long as he needed her to.

Eileen had noticed Ren's solemnity all through dinner, but didn't think anything of it. She'd just presumed that it was hormonal and had let it go. A few hours later she noticed that Ren was sitting on the couch watching TV, but not really paying that much attention to it, so she decided to ask her if anything was bothering her.

"It's nothing, Mom," Ren replied, putting a hand on her stomach. "I was just thinking."

"Oh. About what, Honey?" Eileen asked, sitting down on the couch next to her daughter.

"Just something somebody told me in school today," Ren sighed. She was now unconsciously rubbing her belly in a circular motion.

"Well, do you want to talk about it?" Eileen asked anxiously.

"I can't. I promised I wouldn't," Ren told Eileen with a little more enthusiasm than she'd shown all evening.

"Oh, I see," Eileen said noncommittally.

"It's not that I don't want to tell you, Mom. I really do, but I promised. And I promise that when this person wants other people to know what their secret is, you'll be the first person I tell. Okay?" Ren asked. Eileen smiled.

"Of course, Dear." Eileen sat back on the couch to relax, but suddenly sat straight up as if a light had just turned on inside of her head. "Oh, Ren, I almost forgot to tell you. Donny called today," Eileen said excitedly. Ren turned the television off and focused her attention on her mother.

"Yeah!"

"He and Wendi set a wedding date!" Eileen exclaimed. "It is July...Seventeenth!"

"That's great," Ren said excitedly, "I can't wait, but right now I have to call Bobby to make sure he knows that we have that parenting class tomorrow evening and then I'm gonna go to bed a little early."

"Okay, Ren, but I think you're gonna have to pry the phone from Louis's hands first. He's been on with Tawny all night," Eileen laughed.

"Alright, Mom," Ren said, giving her mother a hug, and then going upstairs. "Goodnight," she called from the stairs.

"Goodnight, Ren."

It didn't take long to get the phone away from Louis and it only took a couple of minutes to call Bobby and let him know that they had a parenting class scheduled for the next evening. In fact, it took longer for her and Bobby to say goodnight than it did to tell him the reason for the call. It was only nine-thirty when they hung up, but Ren got into bed almost the second she got off the phone. It took her a while to get comfortable; being pregnant nearly made it impossible as she couldn't lie on her stomach. However, Ren had learned that sleeping on one side was better than sleeping on her back, so she turned on her left side. Not only was it easier to turn the light off, she'd read that it was easier to breathe that way too. This she found to be true enough.

Once Ren turned out her light, she closed her eyes and tried to go to sleep. Everything was quiet except for the wind. Ren could hear the wind blowing outside her window. It sounded cold and lonely. It howled every now and again, sending chills down her spine. Ren couldn't help but think about Larry and what he'd told her that afternoon. 'Poor Larry,' she thought. 'Losing one mom is hard enough, but knowing you have another...somewhere...that's tougher...' Ren drifted in thought. She kissed her right palm and placed it on her belly, rubbing it. Then she wrapped her arms around her stomach as best as she could and finally fell asleep. The wind moaned sorrowfully all night long.

The Next Day at School...

Ren was at school just as early as she was the day before. And so was Larry. They even walked into the school together, talking about the day before. It was a nice feeling. They hadn't gotten along since they'd been chained together and wanted to find a way to get unchained, but they both felt they could have a true friendship now. They even decided that, at the end of the year, they'd tell each other's secrets to the school in articles for the Wallaby.

The two teens had stopped at Ren's locker.

"Are you absolutely sure you wanna do that, Larry?" Ren asked, trying to make a confirmation of the deal. "I mean, you've kept your secret this long, what's one more year? Besides, it's different for me. People are going to notice when I leave and don't come back for the rest of the year," she told Larry, putting a hand on her stomach.

"I'm absolutely positive, Stevens. It's been almost a burden carrying the truth about my parents for this long." He looked down at the floor, glanced at Ren's stomach, and then returned his gaze to straight ahead of him. "Besides," he smiled broadly, "It'll be an even trade and neither of us will have any secrets to carry around."

"I guess you're right, Lare," Ren said, opening her locker and taking out her notebook for her fist period English class. "Listen though, I gotta get going. I'm still Principal Wexler's assistant."

"That's great. Tell 'im I said 'hi' for me, will ya?"

"Yeah, I will. See you before class?"

"Sure. We're friends now aren't we? See ya, Stevens!" Larry said, heading toward the newspaper office while Ren went in the opposite direction toward the main office.

Before First Period...

Ren met up with Ruby outside their classroom door like they usually did and as always, Ruby started up the conversation. This time it was something about Ruby's new neighbor Mitchell. Her conversation was cut short though when Larry rounded the corner coming from the newspaper office and greeted the girls like he usually did, but not maliciously.

"Hey, Stevens, Mendel! How are you ladies this morning?" he asked almost jubilantly. Ren wasn't surprised by Larry's enthusiasm, but Ruby was.

"Larry?" Ruby asked, jaw gaping. Ren answered for the two of them.

"We're fine, Lare. I'll talk to you later. See ya!"

"See ya!" Larry said, walking away.

"Lare? Ren, WHAT was that all about? Is this 'freak your best friend out day' or something? What's going on between you and Larry Beale? Right now you seemed like you've been best buds for the last ten years." Ren led Ruby into the empty classroom and they sat down in their usual seats at the back of the room.

"Ruby, listen to me," Ren said; Ruby seemed to calm down. "Larry knows. I told him about...you know," she dropped her voice as the rest of the class began to file in.

"Didn't the letter work?" Ruby asked.

"It worked, but then Larry wanted to know who really wrote it and I gave in. And you know what? It felt really good to tell him, to get rid of his suspicions, but he told me something too, something in confidence that you and the rest of the school will find out at the end of the year. I promised to keep his secret, just like he promised to keep mine."

"Wow!" Ruby exclaimed. "I never would have guessed that you and Larry would ever be friends."

"Neither would I, Rube, neither would I," she finished as the bell signaling the start of first period rang. The wind sighed softly in the background.

A/N 2: I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter. The story is really beginning to wind down now, only three chapters left :' ( . However, I am still contemplating whether or not to write a few one-shot update stories for this fic. It all depends on whether or not I'll have time to write them. Just a warning everyone, Chapter 18 may not come until after Thanksgiving. I certainly hope it's out before then, but no fears if it's not, it will come. I've never let you down before and I'm not about to start now. Tootles! : )


	18. Surprises

Disclaimer- You know, I can't say that I own a darn thing…well, except for the storyline.

A/N: Well, it's winding down. After this chapter there will only be two more. I know, it makes me sad too, but when the story's over, it's over. I will, however, try to write a few one-shot updates within six months after RPM has ended. I'm not promising anything though, so you'll just have to wait and see. I'd said I'd TRY. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter as much as you've all enjoyed the other chapters. Be the gems you've been all this time; read and review!!

Also, I'd just like to apologize for the length of time it's taken me to write this chapter. You try writing several papers, studying for several tests, and trying to compare class discrimination on _RMS Titanic_ to those found in Plato's Republic. It's a lot of work! Also, I had finals and my room needed cleaned. BUT, and it's a big but, everything is done which means…More frequent updates! Yay!!

Thanks for the reviews everyone! Most especially Tonyboy!! : ) I never dreamed that I'd have over 100 reviews, all of you made this possible, thanks again!

Ren's Perfect Mistake

Chapter 18: Surprises

Everyday was another day closer to Ren's due date and each day closer was more exciting than the last. Saturday, April twenty-fourth was no exception; it was one month exactly till the baby's due date and it was also the last day of the parenting classes Ren and Bobby had been enrolled in. They would be getting an award for having the top 'grades' in the class—no surprise there!

The rest of the class, first-time parents like Ren and Bobby and veterans who needed a refresher course alike, clapped when they went up to the front of the classroom to receive their award. Dr. Roscoe, who happened to be visiting the class that day, congratulated the teens, telling them that they were "truly ready to be parents."

"Thanks, Dr. Roscoe," Bobby said, grabbing Ren's hand. "We feel ready to be parents—now."

"Yeah," Ren chimed in. "We owe so much to you for your encouragement and suggestions. They've really helped us a lot. So, thanks!" Ren said, pulling out a card from her purse and handing it to the doctor.

"What's this for?" Dr. Roscoe asked.

"Just a little token of our appreciation," Ren stated. Dr. Roscoe opened the envelope, and taking out the card, read it quietly to herself. She looked up at the teens with a huge smile of gratitude. She even gave them both a hug.

"Oh, thank you, you guys. I'll have to hang this in my office; it's the nicest thing anyone's ever done for me. But I really have to get going; I have a meeting. I'll see the two of you in a few weeks. Bye-bye."

"Bye, Dr. Roscoe," Ren called after her. Then she and Bobby went to talk to a few of their new friends from the class.

Kurt and Natasha were the second youngest couple in the class. And like Ren and Bobby they, too, were expecting their first child. But unlike Ren and Bobby, they were in their mid-twenties and married. The two couples had become friends almost instantly. They talked quietly for a few minutes before Jack, another of Ren and Bobby's friends, joined the group.

Jack, also a first-timer, was in his early thirties and this morning he was by himself. His wife, Allie, had gone into premature labor and had had the baby, a little boy they named Anthony Jacob, a few days earlier. He had only come to the class to tell everyone the good news. Everyone congratulated him and sent their best wishes to Allie and the baby. Jack thanked everyone in return and said he'd give Allie their wishes, and then he left to go back to her hospital room to be with her.

Kurt and Natasha had to say goodbye right after Jack left. They had to go home to let their dog, an Airedale terrier named Alfie, out to go to the bathroom. It was just as well too because Bobby and Ren had made plans to go to lunch that afternoon. So the two couples said goodbye to each other and headed out.

"I'm so happy for Allie and Jack," Ren sighed. "But still, I hope our baby doesn't come early. Well, at least not too early."

"Yeah," Bobby conceded, putting his arm around Ren as they were walking onto the elevator (the classroom was on the third floor of Sacramento General), and again as they were walking out to Bobby's car. He helped Ren get in and they were on their way to the restaurant, Tex Nageeta's Burger Bonanza. Bobby wasn't thrilled with it, but Ren said that she wanted a burger and Tex Nageeta's was the closest place around. She added that she was so hungry that she could easily down a King Sloppy no matter how disgusting she thought it was. So, Ren and Bobby were on their way.

It took them about a half hour to get there. Traffic wasn't too terrible, but it was slow. However, it only took them a couple minutes to get their seats. The restaurant was practically deserted since it was almost two o'clock in the afternoon; the lunch crowds had already left. A waiter came and took their orders leaving Ren and Bobby to sit and talk.

The teens talked about many things. The baby, what they were going to do after he or she came (Ren refused to have another ultrasound done that might give away the baby's gender), and Louis's sixteenth birthday (which was coming up in two days) among other topics. They even got involved in a debate about candy flavor and candy color and how some make absolutely no sense. Ren won, but she suspected Bobby of letting her win. After the food came, Bobby got up saying he had to go to the restroom, when he really only had to make a phone call.

He told Ren that he'd be right back, leaving her at the table alone to eat. Thankfully, she believed him. Bobby looked around the men's room making sure that nobody was there and proceeded with the phone call on his cell phone. He flipped his phone open and continued to dial the number. A woman answered.

"Hello?" she asked.

"Hi, is everything ready yet?" Bobby asked.

"Not quite, Bobby. Where are you though and what took you so long to call?"

"We got held up after class. I'm sure Ren will fill you in later. Anyway, we're at Tex Nageeta's having burgers for lunch. We just got our meals a couple minutes ago."

"Okay, good. Stall as much as you can. Someone will call you when everything is ready. And I mean everything."

"Alright, Mrs. Stevens. Bye."

"Bye, Bobby," she replied hanging up the phone. Steve walked into the kitchen and asked who it was. "It was Bobby," Eileen told her husband. "What do you need?"

"I just came in to tell you that everyone is here except for…"

Back at the table…

"There you are!" Ren said when Bobby came back. "I thought you'd fallen in or something," she giggled. She had finished nearly half of her meal already.

"Yeah, so, uh, what do you wanna do after lunch?" Bobby asked nervously.

"Oh, I don't know," Ren answered, chewing on a fry. "I just assumed that we'd go home." She picked up another fry and put it to her lip. "Why?" she asked arching an eyebrow.

"No reason. I only thought since it was a nice day and all we could walk around the square, go shopping. You know."

"You, shopping…voluntarily? What's going on?"

"Nothing, Ren. Honestly. Didn't you just say less than a half hour ago that you still needed to get Louis a birthday present? 'Cause, after all, it is the big 1-6."

"I guess you're right," Ren said, taking another bite of her burger. Bobby just started eating. And he ate very slowly.

Ren was finished with her meal twenty minutes before him. She was getting anxious; tapping her polished fingernails loudly on the table and yawning forcefully to prove her point that she was tired of waiting for him. Bobby finally finished after what seemed like hours since he had started eating. They paid for their meals and left the restaurant.

On the way out the door though, Ren pointed out the picture of Lady Jane on Tex Nageeta's wall of fame and explained to Bobby how she had agreed to show the British girl around Sacramento and how they wound up there. Bobby found it terribly funny and laughed about it all the way to the first store on the town square; Ren had decided that shopping wasn't such a bad idea.

It only took Ren twenty-five minutes to find Louis's birthday present, a stand-up comedy book that he'd wanted for a couple of years. She even had it gift-wrapped. There were a few stores that Bobby insisted they look in, Ren didn't mind, but she could feel that something was going on behind her back; though she couldn't be sure what.

Finally, Ren had had enough. She wanted Bobby to take her home. It was going on four-thirty. They'd been walking around the square for two hours. Bobby still had not received the phone call. It took him a while to answer, but he agreed to take her home after just one more stop.

"No more stops, Bobby. Please," Ren whined. "We've been walking for a couple of hours now and I'm tired. My ankles are swollen too. And my back hurts," she added. "Can't we just go home?"

"We will, but there is just one more spot I want to take you to. You'll love it. Trust me. We have to drive to get there anyway, so you can rest a little in the car. What do you say?"

Ren sighed heavily, "Why not?"

"Good," Bobby told her, kissing her on the cheek. "If you want, you can wait here and I'll bring the car around. That way you can have a little more rest." Ren smiled at his thoughtfulness.

"Okay. Just don't dawdle, alright? I don't want to be forever." Bobby nodded.

"I'll be right back."

"And I'll be waiting right here," Ren told him, sitting down on a nearby park bench.

Bobby ran off around the block to the parking lot and picked up his car. He then proceeded to drive the long way around to stall for time before turning the corner and letting Ren get in. He then headed in the direction of the Sacramento suburbs and got on the freeway.

"I hope this won't take too long," Ren said. "I really just want to get home. I've been up since seven o'clock."

"It'll take as much or as little time as you want it to, Ren. If you don't want to be there, we'll go," Bobby reassured her.

"Okay," Ren sighed. "How much longer till we get to where ever?"

"Not long," Bobby said. He was smiling as he got in the lane to get off the freeway. He drove about ten more minutes before getting onto a narrow, one-way street in what appeared to be a sleepy little town. The only thing that shattered the illusion of being hundreds of miles away from downtown Sacramento was the number of cars parked on the street. This town was no sleepier than the bank on a Friday afternoon.

Bobby pulled into a driveway behind a large strip of buildings and parked the car. "What's going on, Bobby?" Ren asked. "Is this where we're going? Is this the surprise?"

"Yep. Surprise, we're here!" Bobby said, sounding enthusiastic. The teens got out of the car. "You're gonna love it, Ren. You just have to trust me."

"Okay," Ren mumbled, walking around to the other side of the car. The two strolled around to the front of the shopping center, hand in hand. They walked to about the middle of the plaza before going into a small shop filled with baby things. Bobby opened the door for her and told her to go in first; he would follow her in.

Ren's eyes lit up the moment she stepped over the store's threshold. A sales clerk greeted the teens and asked if they needed any assistance. Bobby politely declined and said he'd ask for her the moment they had any questions. "So, what do you think, Ren?" Bobby asked her.

"You know, I hate to admit it, Bobby, but you were right. I...I…I trusted you and you were right. I love this place, but I didn't catch the name as we were coming in. Do you know it?"

"Yeah, this place is called Star Sweepers," Bobby said casually.

"This is Star Sweepers, THE Star Sweepers?"

"Yep, this is the outfitters of celebrity babies from here to London."

"Oh, Bobby!" Ren exclaimed, then lowering her voice, "the things in here have to cost a fortune. We can't afford it."

"Calm down, Ren. You haven't even looked at any price…You know what, Ren, don't look at any prices. I don't want you to. What I want you to do right now is make a list of some of the things you like in here, and after the baby is born," Bobby paused, placing a hand on Ren's belly, "I'll come back here and surprise you with one of the things on the list."

"You don't have to do that, Bobby," Ren said.

"I know, but I want to. No less than ten things on the list; got it." Ren nodded. "Good." Bobby took out a pen and a crumpled up sheet of paper from his pocket. Ren took them, smiling broadly, but lovingly. She'd already found a couple things that she really liked and wrote them down on the piece of paper. Bobby pointed out a few things as well. Then the phone rang. Bobby excused himself to answer his cell phone, saying that it was his sister, Joyce Lynn, calling from New York.

Bobby went outside to take the phone call. It was Mrs. Stevens. "Everyone's here," she whispered, though there really wasn't any need on her end. "Well, everyone except the guest of honor," she giggled.

"Alright, but it may take a few minutes to get Ren out of the store. I took her to Star Sweepers to stall for time."

"Good think…Star Sweepers! You didn't?"

"I'm afraid I did," Bobby replied sheepishly.

"Oh well. Have fun getting her out of there. It's the only thing she's been talking about for the last three weeks or so, well that and excavating Louis's room."

"Excavating? Don't you mean renovating?" Bobby asked.

"No, I mean excavating…haven't you ever seen Louis's room?"

"Yeah, I understand now," Bobby said. "I'm gonna go and try to get her out of the store. I'll have her out in less than fifteen minutes."

"Okay, could you possibly honk the horn before you pull into the driveway? Tell her a squirrel ran out in front of you or something."

"Alright, Mrs. Stevens. See you, bye." Bobby hung up the phone and went back into the baby store, walking up behind Ren and putting his arms around her from behind.

"What did your sister want, Bobby?" she asked.

"Not much," Bobby said, smiling slyly. Ren couldn't see his face as he was behind her. "She just wanted to tell me that she and Gary are in town this weekend. That's all."

"Are they really in town?" Ren asked.

"Yeah, would you wanna go see them?" he asked.

"Would I?" Ren asked excitedly. "Of course I do. We can always come back here and look. There's a month before the baby comes." She handed him the list and his pen back.

"Maybe we won't have to come back here. It looks like you wrote down everything in the store already," Bobby teased. Ren playfully punched him in the arm and, after saying goodbye to the clerk, left the way they had come in.

Ren didn't suspect anything until Bobby turned down her street to go home instead of his. "I thought you said your brother and sister were home," she said.

"They are," Bobby grinned. "I just thought you might want to…oh, I don't know, freshen up a bit since they asked me to meet them at Chez Restaurant."

"Chez Restaurant," Ren asked, "that high class French restaurant downtown?"

"Yeah, it's not that big of a deal," Bobby grinned.

"Not that big of a deal? Bobby, that's the most expensive restaurant in Sacramento!" Ren exclaimed.

Bobby just smiled and then pulled into Ren's driveway and honked the horn like he was asked.

"What was that for?" Ren asked.

"Uh, squirrel ran out in front of me," he said parking the car.

"Oh," Ren uttered noncommittally. "It must've been in my blind spot; I didn't see anything."

"Must've," Bobby muttered.

He got out of the car, and whistling, walked around to the other side to help Ren out.

"What's going on, Bobby? I know we aren't really going to Chez Restaurant. It's way too expensive…" Ren asked when Bobby opened her door to let her out, but he shushed her by putting a fingertip to her lips. He thought a couple seconds before answering.

"Just trust me, okay?" Bobby said. Ren nodded.

"Okay," she said taking her house key out of her purse to open the door. Nobody else was home even though it was a Saturday. Her parents had said something about going out for a little while and Louis was at Twitty's as far as she knew. She unlocked the door and opened it…

"SURPRISE!!!" a fairly large group of people shouted when she walked in. Ren felt her heart skip a beat and the baby kick. Ren stared in shock for a moment. She saw many familiar faces. Her parents, her brothers, Wendi, Bobby's parents, his brother and sister, Monique, and even Beans among others she did and did not know, or at least didn't recognize. When she finally came out of her stupor, she was slightly angry.

"I didn't see any cars out…never mind. What's going…?" Ren started. "You tricked me," she said glaring at her boyfriend. She swatted at him with her purse. Mrs. Stevens and Ruby both came to Bobby's defense. Everyone else sort of dissipated throughout the rest of the house.

"It wasn't Bobby's idea, Ren," Eileen said, grinning.

"Yeah, it was mine," Ruby chimed in. "Besides, you never said anything about _not_ having a baby shower," she added.

"I know and I should have. You know you really didn't have to do this…"

"I know, but we wanted to."

"We?" Ren asked.

"Yeah. You see, I went to your brother after school about throwing a baby shower for you a couple months ago. Then Louis went to your mom, who came back to me and we worked all of this out while you and Bobby were at your parenting classes. Then we got Bobby involved a few weeks ago. Now here we are," Ruby said cheerfully.

"Thanks," Ren said whole-heartedly. "This means a lot to me, but you nearly gave me a heart attack," she told her best friend smiling.

"Sorry," Ruby laughed grabbing Ren's hand. "Come on, there're more surprises."

"More surprises?" Ren asked uncomfortably, not sure if she wanted to go inside any further. Between the foyer and front porch was just fine for her, but she followed anyway. At least she was warned about them ahead of time. Bobby finally came all the way in and closed the door behind him.

Mrs. Stevens patted him on the back and told him he did a "good job." Bobby smiled and followed the girls. Ruby had already dragged Ren into the living room where a huge pile of gifts sat. Ren said "hello" to some of the guests she recognized while Ruby continued to pull her through the house.

"Where are you dragging me to?" Ren asked. She was getting a little disgruntled over not knowing what was going on.

"You'll see," is all Ruby would tell her. Then they stopped in front of Donny's old bedroom. The door was closed. "Open the door," Ruby urged.

"Why? It's just Donny's old bedroom. It will be the same as it was this morning unless the remodeling fairies came over while I was at my class."

"Oh, don't be a party pooper. Just open it!" Ruby was hardly able to contain her excitement. Ren opened the door and it was just as she thought it would look, except there was someone inside. It was a boy with medium-dark skin and dark hair. He was tall and not too muscular.

"Who are you?" Ren asked, confused. The teenager stood up and walked over to Ren. He was smiling broadly, almost laughing.

"Come on, Ren. Don't tell me that you don't remember your oldest and dearest friend," he said smiling even more. Ren squinted.

"Nelson Menkler? Is that really you?" she asked. He nodded. The two friends hugged. "How are you?" Ren asked.

"I'm fine. And I see you're doing okay too," Nelson said. "I couldn't believe it when your mom told me."

"Oh my gosh! Where have you been living these past few years? I never hear from you anymore."

"Actually, I've been living in France as a foreign exchange student. It's been loads of fun, but I'm starting to miss Sacramento again. I'm going to move back here in the summer for my senior year so I can graduate from Walton!"

"That's great news, Nelson! I'm so happy," Ren said smiling. The baby kicked too and she unconsciously put her hand on her stomach. "Ruby, this really is a great surprise." She hugged Ruby. "Thank you so much!"

"You're welcome, you're welcome!" Ruby exclaimed. Then the three went downstairs to mingle with everybody.

Downstairs, Ren was even further surprised to find that Larry Beale was there. She hadn't been sure that everybody knew they were friends now, but there he was. She was delighted to see Monique was there as well, already chasing Larry around the house. Larry eventually succumbed and decided to catch up on his "gossip" with her.

A couple hours later the time came to open presents. And there were a lot of them; big ones, small ones, and every size in between. Bobby and Ren sat down on the couch together to open them with all the guests sitting around.

Steve and Eileen handed them the gifts to be unwrapped. Wendi made herself useful by writing down who gave what so the teens could write out "proper thank you cards." And Ruby and Tawny started a neat pile of already unwrapped gifts on the other side of the room.

By the time Ren and Bobby had finished unwrapping everything, they had two cribs, two strollers, and two car seats! One would think Ren was having twins. However, the adults' reasoning for having two of all the big gifts was so each teen would have the same things at their own houses since they were sharing responsibilities. There weren't a lot of clothes and toys because the baby's gender would not be known until it was born. The teens received a lot of cash to make up for the lack of clothing and toys though.

Mr. and Mrs. Deaver left fairly early. They took Bobby's half of the larger items home with them. Many of the other guests left soon after. The only people left at the Stevens' house were Ren and Bobby's friends including Ruby, Larry, Monique, Nelson, Tom, Twitty, and Tawny. All of them played board games the rest of the night and had sort of their own party.

Nelson said that he would only be staying until the next evening. He had a lot to talk about, but what he talked about most was coming back to the United States in the summer. He couldn't wait to get home.

Monique, on the other hand, would be leaving early the next afternoon. She said she was spending the night at her aunt's.

It was nearly ten o'clock in the evening before everyone left, except for Nelson; he was staying at the Stevens' house. Bobby reluctantly said goodbye to Ren at around ten fifteen. They kissed and told each other they loved the other and that they would see each other tomorrow before he finally got into his car and drove home.

After that Ren came back into the living room and sat down on the couch with her brother and Nelson who were talking about some new video game. Ren just sat there listening to them for a while before they noticed she was there.

"Oh, I didn't see you sit down," Nelson said a little embarrassed.

"It's okay. You were busy discussing video games," Ren giggled. "Oh, Nelson, I'm so happy you came."

"I'm glad I came to," he smiled. "I never would have thought that you would have gotten back with Bobby after he cheated on you with Mandy "Always-Gets-Her-Man" Sanchez though."

"Yeah, me neither," Ren sighed. Louis stood up from the couch, pretending to stretch.

"Uh, I'm just gonna go up to my room and let you two talk, okay?"

"Yeah, whatever, Lou," Ren told him. "Goodnight."

"Yeah, goodnight, Ren, Nelson," Louis said on his way upstairs.

"Goodnight, Louis," Nelson called. "I thought you hated Bobby," he continued.

"I did. Then he moved to New York and didn't come back until last year. I'd already broken up with Jason…

"Who's Jason?" Nelson asked. Ren had forgotten that they didn't air the show Family Fake Out in France, so she explained what happened. Nelson was shocked, but he understood that Ren didn't feel very comfortable talking about it, so he dropped the subject. Instead he told Ren what he overheard about Larry and Monique.

"What's that?" Ren asked. She was so busy talking to other guests that she hadn't had much time to talk to them. Though, according to Nelson, they didn't seem to mind because they were too busy flirting with each other.

"Sometime after you opened the first present and the last present, Larry asked Monique out on a date for the next day," Nelson grinned. "It was nothing big though, just breakfast."

"Really?" Ren asked. "It's about time. Monique was always talking about going out with Larry."

"You're kidding!" Nelson said.

"Nope," Ren said shaking her head. They talked and laughed until nearly midnight, by which time they were both exhausted; Nelson from jet lag and Ren from just being pregnant. So they decided to call it a night. Ren went to her room and Nelson was using Donny's old room.

The next day…

Ren woke up unusually early on Sunday, April twenty-fifth, but she did not feel tired, not in the least bit. She felt quite full of life. Everyone else in the house was still asleep, so she decided to start breakfast. Toast, eggs, sausage, hot cereal, the works, and she even made bacon expecting that Beans would undoubtedly show up sooner or later. She kept everything warm in the oven until everyone woke up, by which time she had already set the table and started cleaning out the refrigerator of expired produce.

After everyone had woken up and eaten she cleared the table and washed the dishes as well, then she settled down. She talked to Monique for about a half an hour and spent the remainder of the day with Nelson before he had to board a plane and go back to France.

Monday…

The next day was a school day and also Louis's birthday. Ren hadn't slept well the night before. She kept getting up and doing things around the house. She even started mixing cake batter at five in the morning at which time her mother came downstairs and told her to go back to bed. Ren did so, but reluctantly. However, she finished the cake as soon as she got home from school.

The Stevens family went out to dinner later that night at Louis's favorite restaurant to celebrate his sixteenth birthday. And at home that night everyone gave him his presents. He especially loved the book Ren gave him.

The days to come...

Over the next week Ren was sleeping less and less at night. Instead she would get up and do things around the house. During the day she would do stuff around the school and by Friday afternoon all of her teachers were relieved to be rid of her for the weekend. She'd even driven Principal Wexler nuts. She had rearranged his desk and office several times that week.

At home in the evenings she'd dust and vacuum every room in the house. If someone asked if she wanted any help she would insist on doing it herself, her way. She'd even tried to clean Louis's room. He eventually had to start locking his door to keep her out. This worried her mother, so she called Ren into the kitchen to sit down and talk to her. Ren took a seat at the table where her mother was sitting.

"What is it, Mom?" Ren asked.

"It's you, Ren. Quite frankly, you're driving everyone insane with all of this cleaning and rearranging," Eileen told her. Ren looked at her confused.

"What do you mean, Mom?" Ren asked.

"Oh, Honey! Haven't you noticed anything? Louis has had his door locked for the last three days. And I didn't want to tell you this, but, one of your teachers called complaining about you constantly reorganizing her desk this week and so did Principal Wexler."

"They did?"

"Uh-huh," Eileen said noncommittally.

"Oh, I didn't even realize…It's just, everything was so messy. It was annoying me."

"I'm sure it was, Dear. Just try and keep it under control while you're at school. Okay?"

"I'll try, Mom," Ren said.

"I know you will," Eileen said, though not completely convinced. She knew her daughter was nesting, which meant the baby would be coming sooner than expected. But maybe she was just being paranoid.

A/N 2: This is the end of chapter 18! Two more chapters to go and I promise they'll be up a lot sooner than this one. I'm starting on Chapter 19 as soon as this chapter is posted. The story should be finished by the end of the year. YAY! However, those chapters will probably not be as long as this one or any of the previous ones. I actually have some passages hand written in a notebook for the next chapter, so it should be coming soon. Once again I apologize for the excessive wait. Keep writing if you write, Keep reviewing if you review, and Keep smiling no matter who you are! Tootles.

Also, I (think I) made up a few more names--Chez Restaurant and Star Sweepers. If they sound familiar I don't own them.


	19. Tuesday's Child

Disclaimer: Last time I checked I still didn't own anything except the storyline.

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2005 EVERYBODY!!!!!

A/N: Hey everybody I hope your holidays were happy! I said I would have chapter 19 up soon and here it is. The next chapter is the big finale. Please be the gems I know you are; read and review! I do have one small request for anyone who is reviewing-please try to give me a little bit more critique, not that I don't appreciate all of your reviews, I just want to hear a little more input from you readers. Thanks!

Note to camdengirl4ever: you really met C C-R? That is so cool! The only celeb I've ever met was Ben Stein.

Thanks for the reviews everyone! Also, welcome newbie kmanning14! (Hope I spelled that right.)

Ren's Perfect Mistake

Chapter 19: Tuesday's Child

It was late in the morning on Tuesday, May 4th, 2004 and the Stevens' house was still. Neither the senator nor the lawyer was at work, or the kids at school. Ren's water had broken in the middle of the night and they were all at the Sacramento General Hospital where just two minutes after six o'clock, Ren gave birth to a healthy baby girl she and Bobby named Felicia Grace. She was a whole twenty days early; Eileen had been right to be worried.

Felicia was seven pounds two ounces, twenty inches long, and had ten fingers and ten toes. There was no injury (or pain for that matter due to the miracle of drugs) to the mother; however the father had to be treated for a minor concussion. Bobby had fainted, though he's denied it to everyone who's asked thus far.

Steve had called Donny and Wendi at school. They said they would be on their way as soon as they finished their finals for the day. Eileen was in the waiting room talking to Mr. and Mrs. Deaver about how beautiful their new granddaughter was.

At the present time though, Ren was sleeping away the effects of the pain killers and Bobby was looking at his daughter through the nursery window. Louis was there too, watching.

"She's gorgeous," Louis said. "And all that hair!"

"Yeah," Bobby sighed, "just like her mother." Bobby continued staring through the glass and Louis went to go find out if Ren was awake yet. A nurse came out and asked Bobby if he wanted to hold Felicia; he did, but only for a few minutes because his parents came to see the baby and his mother wanted to hold her.

The nurse put the baby in Mrs. Deaver's arms and said she'd be right back. That she had to go check on a few other new moms.

Mrs. Deaver cooed at the baby and held her tiny hands. She whispered, "I'm your Grandma Deaver. Yes, I am," in a soft, but high pitched voice. Bobby smiled. Somehow everything had worked out smoothly. Mr. Deaver walked over to Bobby and put a hand gently on his son's shoulder.

"Your mother and I are very proud of you and Ren, Son," Mr. Deaver told Bobby.

"Thanks, Dad," Bobby said.

Louis came back a few minutes later to find the nurse to tell her that Ren was awake now and asking for the baby. The nurse came back a few minutes later. Louis gave the nurse the message and she took the baby out of Mrs. Deaver's arms and put Felicia back in the rolling nursery cart to take her to her mother. Mr. and Mrs. Deaver went back to the waiting room to talk to the Stevens. Bobby followed the nurse to room 302 where Ren was waiting.

In the room…

"There you are!" Ren said to Felicia as the nurse put her in Ren's arms. Ren gingerly sat up in her hospital bed.

"Hey, Ren," Bobby said, cautiously taking a seat on the edge of the hospital bed. "How are you feeling?"

"Considering I'm seventeen and I just gave birth to this beautiful baby girl, I'm doing just fine," Ren told Bobby.

"My parents are here."

"They are?" Ren asked. "I thought they had to work."

"They're playing hooky this morning. And they brought a camera. They want a load of pictures of their first grandchild." Ren smiled. She was pretty sure her parents had brought a camera as well. Possibly even the video camera.

"Why don't they come in?" Ren asked.

"I'm not sure," Bobby said. "I think maybe they wanted to give us some privacy, so they went back to the waiting room to talk."

"Well, they can come in if they want to," Ren said looking at baby Felicia's tiny hands, holding them in her fingers.

"I almost forgot to tell you. Ruby's gonna stop by later with our homework. You don't have to do yours. I told her to bring it so you'd have it. I know you don't want to get behind in school…"

"Thanks, Bobby," Ren said, repositioning the tiny bundle in her arms. "But you do know that I won't be going back to school this year. At all."

"I know, but that doesn't mean you have to fail eleventh grade."

"And I won't because I'll be able to do all my work. I'm hiring a tutor."

"That's a great idea! I'll hire a tutor too…"

"No, Bobby. You go to school. Don't stay home because of me. Besides, I wanna know what really goes on at school and not Ruby's hyped up version." Ren and Bobby both laughed disturbing the baby, who had been sleeping. "Oh, I'm sorry, Little One. Shh. It's okay," Ren said, though she was still laughing.

Both sets of grandparents came in a few minutes later and visited; snapping photos and creating a video documentary. However, they were shooed out at around lunchtime when the nurse came to take Felicia back to the nursery.

The Deavers, despite wanting to stay there all day, knew they had to get back to their offices. Mr. and Mrs. Stevens, while they did not have to worry about their careers for the time being, had to supervise the turning of Donny's old room into a suitable baby's room. Louis had already gone home to start moving furniture out.

Bobby, on the other hand, decided that it was his duty to stay the rest of the afternoon just talking to Ren about anything and everything. He only left for a short time to get lunch for himself.

At school…

There was something of a buzz at Walton on this particular morning. Not only did Ren not show up (for the third or fourth time this year) neither did her younger brother Louis. They were never absent on the same day. Never. Also, Ren's long time boyfriend, Bobby Deaver was out. His record had been spotless all year.

Rumor was that they had all gotten into a car accident on the way to school. Only a handful of people knew what was really going on though. They'd all been called this morning by at least one member of the Stevens family.

Ruby, Larry, Tawny, Twitty, and Tom all sat together at lunch talking about it.

"This is so exciting!" Ruby practically shrieked. Everyone shushed her. "Oh come on, I wasn't that loud. This is just so exciting!"

"Yeah, who'd have thought that Ren would be a mother before the end of this week?" Tom whispered. "I thought she wasn't due for a few more weeks."

"She wasn't; the baby came early," Tawny said. "At least that's what Louis told me when he called me this morning."

"What's the baby's name again?" Twitty asked. "I was still kinda, oh I don't know, asleep when Louis called and told me."

"You know she had a girl, right, Twitty?" He nodded. "She named her Felicia Grace."

"Oh, that's right. Ren told us when we were studying for midterms!" Twitty exclaimed.

"Yo, guys, maybe we shouldn't be talking about this," Larry started. "Someone might hear us."

"You know, you may be right, Lare," Ruby said and changed the subject. "So how are things between you and Monique? Hmm?" Ruby asked, digging.

"Come on, tell us Larry," Tawny chimed in. "We're all dying to know."

"Things are excellent if you need to know. Who says long distance relationships never work out? Besides that, she's coming back to Sacramento this summer," Larry said somewhat indignantly. "To visit me," he added.

"That's great, Lare. And next time you talk to her could you tell her I said 'hi'?" Ruby asked.

"Yeah, sure, whatever," Larry replied. "So, who all is going to see Ren after school?" He had completely forgotten that he'd just told everyone else to be quiet about the issue.

"Shh!" everyone hissed.

"Sorry, it was just a question."

"Actually," Ruby replied. "I'm going right after school to bring Ren and Bobby their homework."

"You are?" Twitty asked. "Cause Louis asked me to bring him his, but I have this really big project that needs to get done and if I don't get it done today I'll never get it done. So, could you take it to him for me? Please."

"Yeah, sure I can. Anyway, can you get Louis's work to me? Cause I'm not tracking you down after school," Ruby said.

"Here's some of it," Twitty said handing over a small stack of papers to Ruby in a manila folder. "But that's not all of it, so could you like wait by your locker after school and I'll give you the rest?"

"Okay, but I don't want to wait forever," Ruby told Twitty. She was slightly annoyed.

"Don't worry, Ruby, I can help you bring everyone their homework. I'm going to the hospital…" Tawny paused, "Oh, I just remembered. I can't; I promised Twitty that I'd help him with his project," Tawny said sounding very disappointed.

"That's okay, but I think Larry's right. We should stop talking about Ren and Bobby now. We don't want anyone to overhear us," Ruby whispered.

After school…

Ruby was waiting by her locker for Alan Twitty to come with the rest of Louis Stevens' school work. She was getting rather impatient. She really wanted to go see her best friend and her baby. "Come on, come on," she said rapping her fingernails on her locker door. "I don't have all day."

Finally, about five minutes later, Twitty showed up carrying another pile of papers.

"Sorry it took me so long. Mr. Fielding didn't want to give me Louis's work. He thinks he's skipping."

"Well, Louis sorta is skipping school today," Ruby said. "Give me his papers so I can go." She sounded somewhat disgusted.

"That's not the poi…" Twitty started to say. "Ah, forget it," he said and walked away.

"Bye," Ruby called after him.

Around the corner…

"Did you give Ruby the papers like Louis asked you to?" Tawny asked Twitty when he came into view.

"Yeah, and I hope Louis's little scheme works," Twitty sighed.

"Me too, we've worked too long and too hard for this to fall apart now. I sure hope Bobby was right to think that Ruby would leave all that homework in her car," Tawny said.

"Me too," Twitty said. "Where's Tom? His mom is supposed to drive us over to Louis's."

At the hospital…

It only took Ruby about a half an hour to get to Sacramento General where Ren was. She could feel goose bumps running down her spine as soon as she entered the waiting room on the first floor. Ruby hated hospitals, but she so badly wanted to see her best friend. She stopped at the directory and asked for Ren's room number and then followed the signs.

When Ruby found Ren's room, the door was cracked open a bit and she could hear voices. She knew it was Ren and Bobby at once. By the tone in both of their voices Ruby could tell the baby was in there as well. She lightly knocked on the door and waited for someone to answer, but nobody did. So, Ruby knocked a little louder and she finally heard Ren ask her to come in.

"Hey, Ren, Bobby," Ruby said smiling when she walked in the door. She proceeded over to the bed. "And this must be baby Felicia?!" Ruby said nearly squeaking, then gently stroking the baby's hair. "I brought your homework, Ren. It's in my car."

"Thanks, Rube," Ren said quietly, but sincerely. Bobby got up for the first time since lunch. "Where are you going?" Ren asked.

"Um, I'm just gonna go and get a snack. You want anything?" Bobby asked.

"That's okay. I get it," Ren smiled. Both she and Ruby waved when he left the room.

"Oh, he's such a sweetheart…giving us time for our girl talk and all."

"Yeah, he is, isn't he?" Ren said. Then, turning to the baby she said, "Your daddy is such a sweetie. Yes he is. Yep."

"She's beautiful, Ren," Ruby said in awe. "Just gorgeous, like her mother."

"No, Ruby…" Ren started. Ruby was dumbfounded.

"What do you mean 'no', Ren?" Ruby was a little upset. "I thought you were cool with this whole becoming a mom thing. Felicia is one beautiful little girl. How could you not…"

"No, Ruby," Ren said again, "she's perfect!" Ruby smiled in relief.

"Of course she's perfect, Ren. You're her mom," Ruby chuckled.

Ren beamed. "I know. I can't believe I ever thought she was a horrible mistake. But, no," Ren stopped. "Felicia is my _perfect_ mistake," she finished, kissing her newborn daughter on the forehead.

"So, I guess what you thought to be the worst mistake of your life only a few short months ago, is now the best mistake you ever made?" Ruby said giggling. Ren started laughing just then too.

"Yeah I guess it is!" Ren said. She was laughing so hard by now she was nearly in tears. "Would you like to hold her?" she asked Ruby between sniffles.

"Would I?" Ruby said. Ren then handed Ruby the baby. "Oh hello," Ruby cooed. Bobby returned at this moment.

"Hey, Ren," Bobby said when he came in. "Donny and Wendi are here. They're waiting in the lobby."

"They are; really?" Ren asked. Bobby nodded.

"Do you want me to go get them?"

"In a minute," Ren said.

"Okay, I'll just…uh…step out of the room for a sec," Bobby said. He leaned over and kissed Ren on the cheek before leaving the room. Ruby was still talking to the baby.

"Thanks for letting me hold her, Ren," Ruby said while putting Felicia back in Ren's arms, "but I really hafta get going. Homework—Mr. Marky loaded us with it tonight." She smiled.

"Alright, Rube. Don't be afraid to call me if you need anything," Ren told her, writing down the room's phone number.

"Thanks again, Ren," Ruby told her on her way out the door. "Oh, I almost forgot; I still have your guys's homework in my car. You want me to just drop it off at your house?"

"That's fine, Rube. See ya."

"Bye, Ren. Bye-bye, Felicia," Ruby said and finally left. She had a new errand to run—dropping off homework. She said goodbye to Bobby, Donny, and Wendi on her way out of the waiting room, got on the elevator, and was gone.

Bobby led Donny and Wendi down the corridor to Ren's hospital room.

"Here it is," Bobby said, pushing open the door. Ren was sitting up in the bed holding the baby. Donny and Wendi walked in, Bobby following them.

Donny walked over to the bed and hugged his younger sister. "So, this is my niece?" he asked. Ren was all smiles.

"Yep, this is your niece, Donny—Felicia Grace."

"Oh, she's just darling," Wendi said. "And she looks just like you."

"Yeah, and I bet she'll be as smart as you too, Ren," Donny added.

"You think so?"

"I know so," Donny said. Ren was so proud. Wendi took her camera out of her purse.

"Okay. Donny, Ren, lean in together. I want pictures of you two and Baby Felicia," Wendi said. Bobby sat back in a chair by the door and sighed. Wendi saw him. "Don't worry. I'll get you, Ren, and the baby in a minute, Sweetie."

"That's fine," Bobby said. He wasn't fond of having his picture taken and lately he felt like a celebrity. 'And speaking of which,' he thought, 'I promised Ren I'd get something for the baby at Star Sweepers.' He then decided that he'd go after Wendi took his picture with Ren and the baby.

Donny and Ren waited patiently in their pose for Wendi to take their picture. Wendi pressed the button on her camera, but nothing happened. "That's funny," she said, her arms akimbo. She carefully examined her camera, pressing every button. "I don't understand," she said finally, "I just used this blasted thing yesterday and it worked fine."

Wendi stood there for a few moments. Donny and Ren were relieved to relinquish their pose for the time being. Suddenly, Wendi remembered why her camera wasn't working, "I ran out of film yesterday!" She was shaking her head. "I guess I'll just have to go to the store to buy some more," she sighed. "You guys just stay here while I drive over to the drug store to buy some more film."

"Oh, you don't have to go to the drug store to get film, Wendi," Ren told her. "The gift shop downstairs has some."

"Gosh, I know that, Ren," Wendi said, "but it's cheaper at the drug store."

Ren nodded, "You have a point."

"Okay, Guys. I won't be long," Wendi said on her way out the door. Bobby stood up from his chair a second later.

"Hey, Ren," he started, "I'm going to head out for a couple of hours; if that's okay with you?" he asked.

"Yeah, that's fine. You'll have to pick up your homework from my house though if you're gonna get it done," Ren told him. He slightly cringed; he'd completely forgotten about homework.

"Alright, see ya, Ren," he said, leaning over the bed and giving both Ren and his new daughter kisses on the cheeks before leaving as well. Now Donny and Ren were alone in the room.

"I just can't believe that you're a mom, Ren," Donny said.

"Believe me; I can't believe I'm a mom either," Ren told her older brother. "I almost forgot; would you like to hold your niece?" she asked.

"Sure," he said, smiling broadly. He carefully took the baby out of Ren's arms and cradled Felicia in his own. "She's so tiny," he said, still smiling.

Ren watched her brother as he bonded with his niece. A lot had been weighing heavily on her mind over the last couple months; mostly thoughts about her future. Ever since sixth grade she'd been planning to go to a special college in New York, but now it seemed that she'd have to settle for a closer school. She also didn't know how she'd even pay for college without a scholarship. She'd seen the movie "Riding in Cars with Boys" and the girl in the movie had tried to get a scholarship, but was denied because she had a kid when she was fifteen.

"Donny?" she asked after a few minutes, "can I ask you a question?"

"Shoot," Donny said.

"What's the College of Sacramento like?"

"Why do you ask that? I thought you had your heart set on that fancy journalism school in New York." Donny was practically stunned. He wasn't the brightest crayon in the box, but he understood his sister's ambitions.

"Donny," Ren started again. "I'm just worried…I mean, I've prepared for college almost my whole life and now I'm not even sure if I'll be able to get the scholarships I need to pay for 'that fancy journalism school in New York.' Heck, I couldn't even go there if I'd still wanted to."

"You don't want to go to New York anymore?" Donny asked.

"I really do, but well, I couldn't. Not with Felicia with me. And I couldn't leave her here. It would be unfair to her and Mom and Dad." Ren felt like she would cry, but stopped herself.

"True," Donny started, handing the baby back to Ren, "but Louis told me something about four years ago when I was a senior in high school that really changed my outlook on things."

"Louis? Really?" Ren said in disbelief.

"Yeah. Louis."

"What did he tell you?"

"He told me that everything happens for a reason. You see, after I lost the scholarship to Texas State I was lost. I didn't know what I would do with myself. And then he told me he had rigged my gymnastic horse with a mechanical bull motor and I chased after him with every intent of beating him to a pulp. But that's not important, what is important is that after I tackled him to the ground the coach from TSU saw me and gave the scholarship back. My dreams of playing football for Texas could have been a reality."

Ren was completely stumped. "Okay? So if you had the scholarship in your hands, why didn't you go to Texas State?"

"I got a better offer from Sacramento AND I found something I'd rather do with my life than play football all the time." He put a hand on the side of his mouth and whispered, "I was a shoe-in for the professional draft you know."

"I know, Donny," Ren smiled.

"But anyway, I decided that I could make a difference in kids' lives by teaching them how to play all the sports I know. I still play football, Ren. And you can still be a journalist even if you don't go to that fancy school."

"I think I understand, Donny," Ren said. "Thanks for the advice. It was really profound."

"Pro-what?" Donny asked.

"Never mind," Ren said shaking her head. "So, how are the wedding plans going?" she asked.

"What wedding? Oh, my wedding," he chuckled. "They are going great. We have the church, we have the date, we're pretty much set. The only things we don't have are the bridesmaids and ushers. Oh, and a ring bearer. But actually, Wendi and I were discussing having Beans as our ring bearer."

"Beans? I thought you were afraid of him."

"Eh, he's just a kid. And I'm gonna ask Louis to be my best man."

"He'll like that," Ren said just as Wendi came back in.

"Are you two ready for pictures?" she grinned. She snapped several pictures before asking where Bobby had disappeared to.

"Oh, he left when you did, Wendi," Ren said. "He had been here since two in the morning and he was tired and had to get his homework done because, unlike me, he'll be going to school in the morning."

"Oh," Wendi said. She sounded a little bit disappointed. She really wanted to get a picture of him, Ren, and Felicia. "That's alright, Ren. We actually have a bit of homework to get done too. Finals are going on this week," she said smiling. "And I know I shouldn't have, but I just couldn't resist. Isn't this the most darling little outfit you've ever seen?" she asked, handing Ren a tiny frilly pink dress with a bunny on it.

"It's adorable!" Ren said in awe. "Thank you."

"I'm so glad you like it, Ren," Wendi said, giving her soon-to-be sister-in-law a hug. Donny leaned in and gave Ren a hug too, and then said goodnight before he and Wendi went back to campus for the evening.

It was just Ren and Felicia until about five-thirty when Louis and his entourage of friends came to visit for a short time. They had all gone in on a small basket of baby stuff: diapers, rags, bottles—the small things she hadn't gotten at the surprise baby shower a week ago. They were all kicked out by the nurse at 6:15, so Ren could eat dinner. Those were the last visitors she had all night. However, she did get several phone calls from her parents and Bobby before she went to sleep at eight-thirty.

The next day was kind of long and boring for Ren, even with her parents there for most of the day. Bobby had stopped to see her and Felicia before school in the morning with a little white teddy bear from Star Sweepers. He said that he would be back to see her again after school. And he was. But so was Larry Beale.

Larry brought a small gift. A little bib with the words "I know I'm perfect," written on it in big pink letters. Ren smiled at Larry's thoughtfulness. However, that was not the only reason he was there; Larry was also there for a story. Bobby left the room while the adolescent journalists worked on each others' stories for the last issue of the Walton Wallaby. Larry had also promised Ren that she could reveal how he was adopted to the school in exchange for her thoughts on being a teen mother.

Writing the articles about each other only took the two an hour. The next issue would come out right on time and boy was the school in for a shock. Larry left in haste once the articles were finished and saved on his laptop.

"See ya later, Ren," he said on his way out the door.

"See ya later, Lare," Ren said. The rest of the day was a blur to her with all the visitors she saw. Donny and Wendi came back and so did Wendi's parents. Principal Wexler stopped by too. Even Beans and his parents visited Ren and the baby—they brought balloons and flowers. Ren couldn't help but be proud.

The next day Ren was allowed to go home. Dr. Roscoe came by her room to check on her once more before releasing her and Felicia at eleven a.m. Mrs. Stevens picked Ren up and drove her home where everyone (who wasn't in school) was waiting for her and the baby.

There was a big Welcome Home, Ren sign hanging on the door and cameras waiting inside. Felicia Grace Deaver had fallen asleep in the car on the ride home. Ren was immediately shown the baby's new room.

It was a beautiful shade of sea foam green with pink and cream colored bows painted at chair rail height. All the oak furniture—the crib, the changing table, the dresser, was set up perfectly. The crib sheets and the bumper pads even matched the walls. The only thing that really stood out in the room was the little orange koala plush that Louis had given her for Christmas. It was sitting on a brand new rocking chair. Ren was about to cry. It was beautiful.

Ren laid Felicia down in the crib the way she'd been taught to in class, and then she turned on the baby monitor and set it on the dresser next to the crib. She took the other one in her hands and went downstairs.

"I don't know how to thank everyone who worked on the baby's room enough," she said through tears of joy. "It's so beautiful," she sniffled.

"Well, don't thank us," Mr. Stevens said. "It was all Louis and his friends."

"And Bobby and Ruby," Mrs. Stevens added on her way down the stairs. Ren looked at her mother in disbelief. "They'd all been planning this for months," she said. "Well, everyone except for Ruby," she added. "She didn't know anything until Tuesday when she dropped off everyone's homework."

"What?" Ren asked. "You're joking!"

"Nope. Your father and I gave them the okay awhile ago. So, we gave them the funds and tools they needed to work their magic and they showed up here after school on their own."

"Ruby didn't know anything about this until Tuesday?" Ren asked.

"Ruby had no idea. They didn't tell her before because she never would have been able to keep her mouth shut," Mrs. Stevens said. "So, Louis, his friends, and Bobby made sure that Ruby had so much homework to drop off that she'd have no choice but to bring it here and that's when they sort of kidnapped her." Ren stared at her mother in a stupor for a while.

"I can't believe I didn't catch on to any of this," Ren said.

"You were a little preoccupied," Ren's mom chuckled.

"I guess so," Ren said. "But I actually do remember my baby shower and I know I didn't get a rocking chair, so who's it from?" Ren inquired.

"The rocking chair is from your brother and his friends. They decided the room needed something else after they were finished, so they went out and bought that yesterday."

"I owe everyone so much," Ren sighed. A sound came from the baby monitor only moments later. It was Felicia crying. "I'll be back in a minute," she told everyone as she ran up the stairs to her baby girl. She was crying even harder by the time Ren got to her. She picked her up and held her close. "It's okay, Sweetie," Ren cooed. She looked up at the ceiling for a moment and for the first time she noticed all of the star stickers (and there were a lot). "It's okay," Ren repeated, "I…Mommy's here."

Ren walked over to the new rocking chair and moved 'Pookie' the koala out of the way before sitting down. She started rocking and, almost immediately, Felicia fell asleep again. "That's it, shh…" Ren whispered. Ren sat there rocking until she was sure Felicia was sound asleep, and then she put the baby back in her crib before heading downstairs again. Before leaving the room though, Ren stopped at the doorway and watched her perfect 'mistake' sleep.

"Things sure are going to be different from now on," Ren sighed heavily; her shoulders heaving as she did.

A/N 2: This is so exciting. Only one more chapter to go! :' (. Oh, well. Life must go on. Also, if you see something familiar in here—I don't own it.

Just a reminder reviewers-I want a little bit more critique for this chapter! Thanks again.


	20. Well Adjusted

Disclaimer: I own the storyline. Yep. I own the storyline and…no, my mistake…I just own the storyline. Oh well.

A/N: First of all, I'd just like to apologize for not updating sooner. I really wanted to post it before now, but school started again and I got really busy. So, here it is everyone—the last chapter. It makes me sad too, but there are some other fanfics that I would love to post. Thanks for the reviews everybody. I couldn't have finished this story without them. They made my job a lot more fun and rewarding. You are all such gems! So, if you write, keep writing; if you review, keep reviewing; and keep smiling no matter who you are: ). Tootles— Jessica a.k.a. Widow Shark.

Note to Ancient Padfoot Sapphire—Thanks for pointing out that mistake in the last chapter. You were right. It either should not have had a comma after the word "home" or it should have had quotes around the phrase like this: 'Welcome Home, Ren.' I'm also glad that you like my story.

Ren's Perfect Mistake

Chapter 20: Well-Adjusted

Just over one month later…

The sound of Felicia crying through the baby monitor told Ren that it was time to wake up; it was five-forty-five in the morning. She groggily got out of her bed and quietly walked down the hall to the baby's room. She picked her daughter up and immediately found the problem—a wet diaper. Ren had become a pro at changing diapers in only her first week of being a mom. Felicia calmed down as soon as she was dry, but she wasn't going back to sleep immediately, so Ren sat down in the beautiful rocking chair her brother, Louis and his friends got for her and started gliding with the baby in her arms. She hummed a lullaby and Felicia closed her eyes.

"That's it, shh, shh," Ren whispered, still rocking back and forth. It wasn't long before Felicia was sound asleep again. She laid the baby back in her crib and headed out of the nursery. She sighed heavily. "Today's the day that everything will be revealed to the students of Walton High School," she whispered to herself on her way back to her bedroom. It was also the first day of finals, and though Ren still maintained straight A's, part of an agreement she had made with Principal Wexler, in order to pass into the twelfth grade, was to attend (and take) all of the finals.

It was six-thirty by the time Ren finished dressing. Louis was up and ready by then too, which had become the usual since Felicia was born. He loved being an uncle. It was good for him; it made him feel more important, more responsible. Ren smiled at the thought and headed downstairs to eat breakfast herself nearly running into her brother as he was on his way downstairs as well. They shuffled around before Louis insisted that Ren go first and she accepted.

"Thank you, good Sir," she mocked, lightly skipping down the steps. Louis followed immediately after her. They walked into the kitchen together and were equally surprised to see Beans sitting at their kitchen table eating breakfast. It was the first time he'd come over since the day Ren came home from the hospital just over five weeks ago.

"Hey, Beans," Ren said, sitting down at the table. As she did so, her mom set a plate down in front of her and went back to cooking. It was a ham 'n' cheese omelet. "You're here awfully early," she commented, "It's what, quarter till seven?"

"Yeah, hey, Buddy," Louis said, taking a box of toaster strudel out of the freezer. "Long time, no see."

"Good morning Ren and Louis!" the kid said excitedly. "I bet you'll never guess what today is."

"I don't know. What's today?" Ren asked, taking a bite of her omelet.

"No, guess!" Beans said.

"Uh—is it your birthday?" Louis asked. He was leaning against the counter waiting for his pastry to heat up.

"No, guess again," Beans said.

"Your last day of school?" Ren suggested.

"Nope. Guess again," Beans said, grinning wickedly.

"The unveiling of a brand-spanking-new but still totally disgusting flavor at Loopy Scoopy?" Ren asked.

"That's not it, but I'll give you one more chance," he said, chewing on a piece of bacon.

Eileen had just finished cooking her French toast and Ren got up to put her empty plate in the sink. She didn't sit back down though. Instead she began fixing Felicia's morning bottle. She still had a lot to get done before school started—including actually feeding the baby and calling Bobby.

"I've got it!" Louis practically shouted. "You're getting…a tattoo."

"Eh! Wrong. I'm getting fitted for a tuxedo!" Beans said.

"Yeah, Donny and Wendi asked Beans to be their ring-bearer in their wedding," Eileen said, finally sitting down at the table herself. "And the only time left for a fitting was at eight o'clock this morning. So, I told Mr. and Mrs. Arenguren that I'd take Bernard to school this morning after we're done."

"That's great, Beans, congratulations!" Ren said setting the bottle on the counter and walking toward the living room. "Today's a big day for me too."

"What are you doing today?" Beans asked.

"Well, I'm going back to school for the first time in five weeks and people are finally going to know about the baby."

"Have fun!" he said cheerfully, and then stuck his last piece of bacon in his mouth.

"You have fun at your tux fitting, Beans," Ren told the kid before heading upstairs to call Bobby, but there was no need because she heard him pulling into the driveway. He was early today. It was only five-till seven and he normally didn't come until quarter after.

Bobby had been coming over every morning before school and every afternoon after school for the last five weeks. He'd even spent the night several times because Felicia's room at his house had not been finished yet, though it would be soon which meant that Ren would be spending some nights alone. She didn't like the idea very much, but she and Bobby had agreed to raise the baby together. They were very well-adjusted already and if they had to, they could always re-adjust.

Ren sighed glancing down at the promise ring Bobby had given her several months beforehand and smiled. 'Who knows, we might even be married one day,' she thought. She opened the front door for Bobby to come in, but he hadn't even gotten out of his car, so she decided to go outside and meet him instead. He didn't even notice she was standing there because he was looking for something in his backpack. She knocked on the driver's side window, startling him. He opened the door and got out, smiling.

"Good morning, Ren," Bobby crooned, kissing her on the cheek.

"Morning, Bobby," she smiled.

"Is…" he started.

"Felicia's still sleeping," Ren cut him off.

"Oh," he muttered.

"So, what were you looking for in your backpack?" Ren asked.

"Just this," Bobby said handing Ren a large white envelope.

"What is it?"

"Just open it and you'll see," he grinned. Ren did as he said and opened the envelope. Inside were the family pictures Bobby and Ren had taken with Felicia a couple weeks ago.

"You never said these came in."

"They came in last night. I wanted them to be a surprise."

"Oh, Bobby!" she paused and gave him a big hug. She took another look at the portraits. "These came out beautifully. Come on. I have to go in and show my parents," she said, grabbing his hand and running to the house. She opened the door and called her parents.

"What is it, Ren?" Steve asked racing down the stairs, still wearing his pajamas. "Hi, Bobby," he interjected. "Is something the matter?"

"No, Dad. Bobby picked up the pictures last night. That's all. See?" Ren said, showing her father the photographs. Eileen came running into the room from the kitchen.

"Is something wro…" she started, but quickly found it was nothing. "Oh these are wonderful!" she exclaimed. "We'll have to get a frame and hang one in the living room." Just then, Louis walked in from the kitchen. He was still eating.

"Hang what in the living room?" Louis asked through a mouthful of strudel. Steve handed him the envelope on his way into the kitchen, Eileen followed him. Louis gulped loudly before speaking again. "Hey, those did turn out good, Ren," he paused, wiping his mouth on his arm. Ren, with a slightly disgusted look on her face, pinched the envelope with two fingers and lightly pulled it out of her brother's grasp. "Anyhow, I gotta go," he said. "I'm meeting Tawny, Twitty, and Tom early so we can go over a few more things before the test. So, I'll see you later!" he said on his way out the door. "And by the way," he said, peeking back in, "Good luck today, Sis!" he finished.

"Thanks, Lou," Ren said. "I'll see you at school." Louis smiled and pulled the door closed.

"Yeah, see ya," Bobby echoed, but the door was already shut. He felt embarrassed for about half a second then thought of something else to say. "So, have you fed Felicia yet?" he asked Ren.

"Actually no, I was just about to go upstairs when you got here. Why, do you want to feed her this morning?" Ren asked.

"Could I?" Bobby asked, hopeful.

"She's your daughter too," Ren laughed setting the envelope on the coffee table. Then they tiptoed up to their daughter's bedroom. She was still sound asleep, so they stopped in the doorway where they could see her.

"She gets prettier every day," Bobby whispered.

"She does," Ren agreed. "She has your eyes, you know?"

"She does?" Bobby asked. The young parents crept further into the green and pink room and watched their daughter sleeping in her white crib.

"Mmm, I hate to wake her up," Ren cringed. "She looks so peaceful when she's asleep. But it's getting late and her bottle is all ready downstairs; it just needs heated up." She started to lean over the side of the crib to pick the baby up, but Bobby stopped her.

"Don't wake her up," he said quietly.

"But we have to feed her before school starts. It's ten after seven. We only have twenty minutes before we have to leave," Ren said, panicked.

"Who's watching her today?" Bobby asked.

"I think my dad is, why?" Ren was curious. "I thought you wanted to feed her today." Bobby put a finger to Ren's lips.

"I do, but I can feed her another time. Let's not wake her up today. I'm sure your dad is perfectly capable of giving her a bottle," Bobby said. "Now let's just go downstairs and let her sleep. It's too stressful to try and feed her so fast. Especially today with the final 'Wallaby' of the year coming out today—and our story in it nonetheless."

"You're right, Bobby," Ren apologized. "Let's just go downstairs and tell my dad that Felicia hasn't eaten yet and get to school early."

Bobby put his arm around Ren's shoulders and guided her downstairs. Ren asked her father if he didn't mind feeding the baby her morning bottle (which he didn't) and the teens were on their way to school by seven-twenty-five.

At school…

There were few people in the halls when Bobby and Ren arrived at school that morning. Many students were already in their classrooms doing some last minute cramming and others were too busy talking to their friends. Bobby and Ren stopped at each others' lockers before splitting up to go to their respective classes.

Ruby was waiting for Ren in their first period classroom and when she saw her she squealed and ran to give her best friend a hug. For a number of reasons the best friends hadn't seen each other in two and a half weeks, however, they had talked on the phone.

"Oh my God, Ren, it's so good to see you again! I know it's only been like two weeks, but I've missed you so much," Ruby exclaimed. "And Larry isn't that much fun to talk to."

"I've missed you too, Ruby. And other than sitting with Larry Beale for the last five weeks, how have things been at school?"

"Oh, believe me, Ren. You haven't missed anything. Well, except for Benny O'Riley getting into a food fight last week, but it didn't even last two minutes." Ruby paused and looked at the clock. People were beginning to file in. There were less than ten minutes until the bell. "So, how's Felicia?" Ruby asked.

"Shh, she's fine. So, does anybody suspect anything?" Ren whispered as a classmate passed. Nobody seemed to notice she was even back.

"Ah, Ren…I didn't want to tell you this, but yeah. A couple girls figured it out, but don't worry! They didn't start any rumors or anything. And a few other people asked me what happened to you, but I didn't say anything."

"Thanks, Rube. So, what do you think will be on this test today?" Ren asked changing the subject before someone overheard.

"It's about everything we learned this past semester. I'm so worried. I knew I should have come over on those days you and your tutor were reviewing. It's an essay test too."

"Don't sweat it, Ruby. I'm sure you'll do just fine." Ren noticed the classroom was almost completely full. "Is there anything that you absolutely don't know that I can teach you in," she paused and looked at the clock, "the next five minutes?"

"What? There's only five minutes left? I'm so doomed!"

"You're not 'doomed,' Ruby. Just calm down. Okay? Breathe, Rube."

"Okay," Ruby said taking a few deep breaths.

"You have nothing to worry about. In fact, I'm the one who should be hyperventilating right now because…" the bell cut her off and the teacher walked in.

"Okay class," Ms. Charm began and the class was silent. "You'll need a blue or black pen and notebook paper. I shouldn't see anything else on your desks…Mr. Cooper, put that walkman away or I'll have to confiscate it. Katie, you can put your make-up on during lunch; you have an hour today." She scanned the room quickly to see if anyone else had anything out that wasn't supposed to be out, but saw nothing. However, she did notice that Ren had returned. "Well, welcome back Miss Stevens. It's nice to see you again," Ms. Charm said.

"It's nice to be back," Ren smiled.

"Okay, is everyone ready? Good," the teacher said as she handed out the test papers. "You only have to answer one essay question," she finished passing out the test sheets. "You may begin."

Every test Ren took seemed to whiz by at an alarming speed and before she knew it, it was lunchtime and time for 'The Wallaby' to be handed out. There were a lot of people out because of the double-A rule, but there were a lot of people still there. Before going to the cafeteria though, Ren went to the newspaper office to meet Larry. After all, his secret would be revealed today too.

Ren knocked on the door to the office and Larry answered. "Come on in," he said. She did.

"I can't believe it's already time to hand these out. You know, Lare?" she asked.

"Yeah. Time flies. Time flies…are you sure you wanna do this, Ren?"

"Are you sure _you_ want to do this, Larry? People are going to find out about me no matter what, but you don't have to tell them your secret. It's up to you."

"No, Ren. I'm not gonna let you go alone. We're friends now, right?" he asked.

"We are," Ren replied. "Now, let's go because nothing is worse than waiting."

"Ain't it the truth, Ren?" Larry said. Each former foe then grabbed a pile of newspapers and headed toward the cafeteria to hand them out.

They both stopped before entering the lunchroom to wish each other luck and then they went in and began handing the papers out. A lot of people welcomed Ren back to school and asked her where she'd been for the last five weeks, but all Ren would tell them was to read the paper. As soon as Ren and Larry finished handing out 'The Wallaby,' they sat down to lunch with Ruby, Bobby, Louis and his friends.

"Well, we did it. The papers are out," Ren sighed.

"At least the weight will be lifted after today," Bobby said.

"I don't know," Ren said. "It's an awfully large weight."

"Bobby's right," Larry said. "I feel better already." He took a bite out of his sandwich. "So, now that the secret's out, I guess it's okay to talk about it."

"Hey, that's right! No more whispering at lunch," Ruby said happily. "So, I'm gonna ask again, how is Felicia?" Ren smiled. She and Bobby could finally talk about the baby without worrying about people listening in.

"Felicia is doing great. And she's already gained two and a half pounds. Oh, her eyes are brown now too. They changed colors; they were blue when she was born. You guys haven't seen her in a while have you?"

"No. We've all been so busy with school," Tawny said, a bit disappointed.

"Yeah, hey, Ren," Louis said, "I've got an idea. We could have everybody over for ice cream after school. My treat. We can celebrate the end of the year and just have a grand ole time. What d'ya say? Huh, Ren?'

"I say we call Mom and Dad to let them know we're all coming," Ren answered. The table cheered.

It wasn't long before the rest of the school started talking. But by the end of the day, in a strange twist of events, everyone seemed to have forgotten about the news that Ren Stevens and Bobby Deaver had a baby together and that Larry Beale was adopted.

After school at the Stevens' house…

It was four o'clock in the afternoon and everyone was sitting in the Stevens' living room finishing their second bowl of ice cream. Louis was in the kitchen getting a third bowl for himself.

"Anyone want more ice cream?" Louis shouted, but everyone declined. Two bowls each was more than enough, so he came back in and sat down next to Tawny. Ruby was sitting on the couch next to Ren, holding Felicia who was once again sleeping. Bobby started taking everyone's empty bowls into the kitchen. Twitty and Tom were looking over their notes for their biology test the next day. And Larry was talking on his cell phone to Monique.

When Bobby sat down again, Ren leaned her head on his shoulder. "What a day," she said. "I thought it was going to be a lot worse though."

"Yeah, I suppose it could have been, but I think everyone was too worried about finals to care," Bobby laughed.

"You think?" Ren asked, lifting her head up.

"He's probably right," Ruby said. "But I'll bet that as soon as summer officially starts it's going to hit everyone and it'll be the talk of Sacramento," she laughed. Ren laughed too.

"Yeah, and Cynthia Mills will finally have her five star story," Tawny giggled. Larry finally got off his cell phone.

"What's everyone laughing at? Do I have something on my shirt?" he asked, a bit paranoid.

"No, you don't have anything on your shirt, Lare," Ren reassured. "We were just laughing at the not so huge reaction to today's 'Wallaby,' that's all."

"True. Everyone will probably either forget about this over the summer or bombard us all with questions when we go back to school," Larry laughed. "By the way, Monique says hello and that she can't wait to see everyone this summer."

Felicia woke up then, startled by all the laughing. She began crying.

"Oh, don't cry, Felicia," Ruby cooed, trying to settle the baby down, but she was only making things worse.

"I'll take her, Rube," Ren said. Ruby handed the baby back to Ren, who immediately calmed her daughter down. "Shh, it's okay…Mommy's here," she said, gently swinging the baby in her arms. Bobby lightly grasped one of Felicia's tiny hands and kissed it. She stopped crying. "Would you like to hold her, Daddy?" Ren asked Bobby.

"Sure, Mommy," he replied, taking the baby from Ren and cradling her in his arms.

"You guys sure look happy together," Ruby commented.

"We are happy, but we've come a long way to get here," Ren said. "And I'd just like to thank everyone for helping us get through this. We couldn't have gotten here alone."

"Awe, you're welcome, Guys," Ruby said, speaking for everyone in the room. "So, is everyone ready for the rest of finals?" she asked, changing the subject, "Because I'm still struggling in Mr. Marky's class. Does anyone know what the quadratic formula is? And how to use it. Oh gosh, I'm gonna fail Algebra for sure!"

"Calm down, Ruby," Ren said. "You aren't going to fail Algebra. You got a B on the midterm, remember?"

"Oh yeah, I did, didn't I?" Ruby said.

"I can help you too, Ruby," Tawny said.

"Thanks," Ruby replied. "I really appreciate this."

Ren looked over at Bobby and noticed Felicia's eyes were closed. "You know what, Bobby; Felicia fell asleep again. So, why don't you go put her down in her crib?" Ren suggested. "And we'll turn our little ice cream social into a study session."

"That's a great idea, Ren, I could use a little help with math myself," Bobby said carefully standing up from the couch. "I'll be back in a few minutes, so don't start without me," he said before disappearing upstairs with his and Ren's daughter in his arms. He came back a few minutes later like he said and sat down with the girls to go over the quadratic formula. Louis, Twitty, and Tom had formed their own biology study group on the other side of the room. And Larry was once again on the phone with Monique.

Ren glanced up from her group and smiled. It would be summer in a few days which meant she'd get to spend more time with her friends, but it also meant more responsibilities. She and Bobby had a little girl to take care of now. The commercials were right: 'Having a baby changes everything.' But Ren also learned something else. She learned that sometimes mistakes turn out to be good things, even if they don't seem like it at first. And Felicia was definitely a perfect mistake.

THE END

A/N: It's over! Can you believe it? Me neither. Anyhow, I really hope you enjoyed my story. Please review. And have a very happy, Happy Hearts Day tomorrow! Tootles!

PS: You may have recognized a few things in here (i.e.—'Having a baby changes everything'). I don't own that, I believe Johnson and Johnson do.

My next story that I will be publishing will be a Shakespeare ficlet that was co-written with CrazySenji called Othello Act V scene i.a. (a.k.a. Othello Meets Freud).


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